Bearer Of Light
by Alceriniel
Summary: This story takes place before the initial story of Lord of the Rings, but mostly within the story. In this story we focus mainly on Legolas, and another who seeks the ring... Changed rating cause of violence and future naughtyness.
1. Preface

Preface: Please Read  
  
I do not own Lord of the Rings, I am just borrowing, I do however own all of the characters that I have in fact put throughout the story, If anyone would wish to use them, I care not. Please, just link me if you do.  
  
Please do not steal the story and place it on your website/anything else without linking me. I would like to link your website to mine if you did such.  
  
REALLY IMPORTANT:  
  
Throughout the story there is scattered Elfish and other things that are explained, most have a * after the word, the * means that there is a footnote at the bottom of the chapter, you may look them up respectively.  
  
Most times were Elfish is used, there will be a translation at the end of it. But if there isn't there will be a footnote.  
  
It took me a long time to get the Elfish translations for the story, so please don't steal them. I worked very hard and the Elfish is actually from the actual Elfin Language the Tolken Created with LOTR. so please don't steal. 


	2. Prologue

Prologue: 'Vanimle sila tiri' (your beauty shines bright)  
  
The wind whispered softly through the trees of Lothiorien, yet every Elf in the kingdom was standing still, all looking up at the lone tower at the top of the highest tree were the queen Galadriel was now giving birth to a daughter. This day was both to be rejoiced and to be mourned. The child she was giving birth to was a daughter, who would be one fourth human, and three parts Elf. She would be gifted with Elven sight, speed, endurance, and hearing, along with the incredibly long life span. But the human part of her would give her the gift of sorcery. No child should have to suffer as she will in the future. She would be a master tool, in securing the free peoples of middle earth. But... should one suffer so much?  
  
***  
  
With a final push the baby was free, long silken hair fell across the babies shoulders, and her light blue eyes shone like stars. She was 'albrean' one of a kind, and there would probably never be another one like her.  
  
Born into royalty, a direct descendent of the Ancient Ones, gifted with the Human line of kings, and kissed by the gods that the Sorcerers prayed to.  
  
Galadriel looked at her child with a smile, it would be several thousand years before the child's destiny would even begin to take shape.  
  
"You shall be called Alceriniel, a star so bright that it would scare away the shadows and the moon would pale in jealousy of your light."  
  
***  
  
Indeed the next several centuries passed like water over a stream, moving some wear but never truly leaving. Alceriniel grew until her appearance appeared to be around twenty (in human years) and gracefully stopped.  
  
She was kept ever busy with learning new languages, along with many kinds of other trades, swordsmanship, archery, blacksmithing, cooking, and just about everything else one might believe there was to study.  
  
But the young Princess grew restless, having never seen the area beyond Lothiorien, and she wondered what awaited her outside the forest. She had taken to reading constantly around her two thousandth year, everything from stories of the old gods to books on architecture, and on to legends of ancient knights.  
  
She also felt incredibly lonely, for her mother had never allowed her to interact much with the opposite sex. She knew little of love, and not how to deal with it when faced with the thought of it. She didn't have many friends outside of her maids who were, not entirely friends, more like pets who came in and out as they pleased.  
  
She was strong, that she had no doubt about, and her skill with the sword and bow were unmatched. Her spell casting however she couldn't measure very well for she had nothing with which to measure it by. She had learned at a young age, that she could change into animals, but there were also limitations.  
  
If she wanted to change her race, from say elf to dwarf, she would look basically the same as she would had she been born into that race. Other things such as animals she couldn't change the sex to a male, (though she wasn't to worried about it).  
  
Her sorcery was strictly fire elemental, and strictly offensive. She couldn't heal or protect people with her magic, she could only destroy. This fact never ceased to bother her. It made her feel as though she was made to hurt.  
  
But the thought of hurting other living creatures wouldn't seem like to bad a idea after long.  
  
***  
  
At Alceriniel 2,556 birthday she was called before both her Mother and "Father". He wasn't her true father she knew. Her mother had told her at a young age that he was not her father, that her father was a Half Elf, and she had fallen in love with him. Though she was the Queen of the Elf, her current partner wasn't in fact the King, Elrond of Rivindell was fulfilling that position.  
  
Alceriniel entered the throne room dressed in a crimson tunic with black trimming, and tan boots, along with her black pants. She was never one to wear dresses or adorn herself with makeup or the jewelry that other females her age would decorate themselves with. She never needed to.  
  
Her long dark hair, was a mixture of several colors, dark red, but mostly the dark brown of freshly rain-dampened earth, and here and there in her hair there were streaks of gold. Her eyes, were crystal blue, that were able to be full of joy at one moment and stormy the next.  
  
She kneeled more out of habit than respect, and looked her mother in the eye.  
  
"Cormamin lindua ele lle" (my heart sings to see thee) Alceriniel whispered to her Mother.  
  
"My child," Galadriel started, then stopped and observed her child carefully. "For many centuries I knew that this day would come, and for many years I have prepared, and for many scores of days have I dreaded for this time to come."  
  
Alceriniel gave her mother a bewildered look.  
  
"Mother, what have you so feared? I have never seen such a expression on your face in all the years that I have known thee. What could make you fear so? Please tell me so that I could make it so you suffer no longer."  
  
"Alas, I know that if it was possible to do so that you would risk your very life for somebody else's happiness, your heart is so pure, yet also so innocent that I fear that you are not completely prepared for the roads ahead of you, your journey is soon to be upon you, yet you have hardly any inclination of how our world interacts with so many others. But I am the only one to blame for your ignorance my child, I can only pray that you may forgive me in some later day."  
  
To this Alceriniel replied  
  
"Nay M'Lady, you have given me much intelligence in the time that I have spent here, and raised me well, I am stronger than even the strongest of your guards, my swordplay is quick and fierce, and my bow is strait and true-"  
  
Galadriel held up her hand to stop the flow of words from her daughters mouth.  
  
"You shall be leaving this country soon, today in fact, and you shall travel to Rivendell, you shall be accompanied by one, a scout of ours. He shall leave you there and return. At Rivindell you shall await your future to come into play, and learn more of our brothers. You shall not see me for many years, and when you next see me, it shall be the last time."  
  
Galadriel stood up and walked close to her only daughter and held out her hand to her.  
  
"This is the only gift that I myself have ever given thee. You do not know why I give it to thee now, but when the time comes, you will know. I assure you."  
  
The hand extended and inside was a ring. A small simple silver band. Alceriniel took it without asking and placed it on her ring finger. Galadriel cupped her face in her hands.  
  
"Now you must leave my child, my beautiful shining star, though I have never told you this before, you must believe me when I tell you that I love you, and am sorry for any suffering that you may encounter in your future."  
  
With a kiss on the forehead Alceriniel left the throne room and went to her quarters. Sure enough a scout awaited her there her bag was already packed for her, and quietly she followed him out of the giant castle within a tree, and left her country.  
  
~~~~  
  
Galadriel watched her daughter sit down onto the boat and make her way into the cave that would lead her to the mouth of the river that would soon take her to her destination.  
  
"'Vanimle sila tiri' (your beauty shines bright)" and for the first time in over fifty centuries, she cried. 


	3. Of Dogs and Gazebos

Chapter 2:  
  
"Mistress Elf why does it seem that a dark shadow hangs above your pretty head?" Asked a servant as she passed by on her way out of the hall that led to the throne room. "Has some dark deed been done to thee?"  
  
"N'uma" (no) she whispered and flashed the maid a small smile.  
  
"That's our pretty girl. Thank you for watching Elena earlier today, she said you took them swimming. It must have been nice. You really are an angel M'Lady, we don't know what we would do with our children if we didn't have you to look after them, and set such a good example."  
  
An image of Alceriniel teaching the kids how to make golems* came to mind and she held back the urge to laugh.  
  
"It is nothing my friend, I shall see her tomorrow then, please give her a hug for me."  
  
"You shall probably see her before that even." Alceriniel turned around. "She hasn't been sleeping lately, she says that she needs to hear a story, but I am not one to tell stories well, and I haven't the time to read either."  
  
"If she sees me before the children's clock has toned* I shall come and tell her a story." Alceriniel bowed and took her leave.  
  
***  
  
Upon entering the court yard Alceriniel saw an old face that she hadn't seen in awhile, and abruptly tackled the form.  
  
"Uncle Gandolf!" she cried holding the felled man in a close friendly hugs. "It has been ages sense I have last seen thee! Were hast thou been? And can you tell me of thy adventures as well?"  
  
Gandolf laughed and patted the girl over the head. "My child," he said with a wide grin. "I have seen you many times and each time I believe that your beauty has grown even greater than the last. And what of these ages? I was here less than four months ago! You and I both walked between the trees together and you sniped some Orcs."  
  
"Time no matter how short can seem long when one has lost a part of there close circle, and I sense a new adventure afoot, fleshly found and still in the making. I wish for you to tell me all about it, and what of Shadowfax? How is my old friend? I haven't seen him sense last you came."  
  
Gandolf held up a hand against the steady flow of questions that poured out of her mouth like water over a cliff.  
  
"My child I have in fact been hear for three weeks, though you have not seen me until now. Rivindell is a large place, and I have been speaking much with Elrond." Upon seeing Alceriniel's wombed look obviously feeling neglected from not been told of his coming he continued. "But thoughts of you did not cease to cross my mind, my child. I have been muchly anticipating our next magic lesson."  
  
"You are probably here for the council." Alceriniel said softly. Gandolf looked at her funny and smiled.  
  
"Its about time your Guardian allowed you to help with the politics around here. But, its less about 'politics' than you would guess. But nonetheless you must be confused, so let me tell you about the story thus far as most know it.  
  
"I am sure that you heard the Legend of the Dark Lord?" she nodded. "The ring of power that he had had in his possession at the time wasn't destroyed. It fell into the lake were a hapless creature named Gollum found it, later it was picked up by a dear friend of mine, Bilbo Baggens-"  
  
"Ara!" she exclaimed. "I know Bilbo, he came here not a month ago, he has told me so much about the world, and still has stories to tell. He is very kind to me."  
  
"He is a kind person," replied Gandalf, "but please do not interrupts. Bilbo left the ring to a young hobbit named Frodo, who left the shire to destroy the ring, among us where three other hobbits, and a human named Aragorn. We have come to Rivindell because our dear Frodo was injured, and to see if the Elves would help with the fate of the ring, among those at the council will be Elves, Humans, Hobbits, and Dwarfs. This ring will effect all of middle earth and it should be treated as such."  
  
Alceriniel nodded, absorbing all of what Gandalf had told her, knowing that he was leaving out some key components in the tale but trusting his judgment all the same. She let out a sigh and smiled.  
  
"Beg my pardon Uncle Gandalf but I feel as though I must go, though I know not wear, my heart so bids it." She bowed and Gandalf put his hand upon her shoulder.  
  
"My child. There is nothing wrong with following your heart. If you believe anything believe that." she nodded and took her leave.  
  
***  
  
Alceriniel was running through the palace five minutes later, heading for the library. She had to find the book about the ring. She remembered little of the story, she had only read it once or twice.  
  
She ran until she arrived at the hall that had the two large double doors that would open her path to the library, when it felt as though all that was within her suddenly clashed with the aura of another Elf that was passing her in the opposite direction.  
  
Both stopped, equally surprised by this sudden attack on all of the senses that they held. Slowly they turned and looked into each other's eyes. Nothing could have prepared her for the beauty of the Elf that she had seen.  
  
He had pale blue eyes, and long blond hair. He was dressed as an Elf from Mirkwood. He was tall and thin, he stood tall and proud. He was wearing a soft silk robe over his initial outfit that was held in front by a brooch, in the shape of the Mirkwood symbol of Ireon*.  
  
They stood staring at each other for a few minutes. Light blue eyes into aquamarine, until he took a step towards her, and she one back.  
  
"I'm sorry," she whispered. "But I must be going." She hurried on her way past the library and up the stairs to the watch tower. Once she reached the top she looked through the small window to wear she had met the young Elf. He was still standing there but looking at the place were she had retreated to.  
  
She blushed when she realized that she was staring. And hid behind the marble blocking him from her view, and took a deep breath, then peeped out the window again.  
  
He was gone.  
  
She walked down the steps of the tower and caucusly looked out the door before leaving, and made her way back to the living quarters. She stopped when she came upon a gazebo and decided to rest for a moment.  
  
The sun was nearly behind the hills, and the trees were sighing and the lakes were like mirrors. The sunlight was glowing a orange-red. The birds were singing there goodnight calls to the sky that was already beginning to become dotted with stars, the full moon was high overhead already, and Alceriniel felt like singing but she did not, though she was three fourths Elf, there was a part of her still human, and that made her singing voice leave much to be desired.  
  
"Amin merna quen, am' gorga tanya lle rim." (I wish to speak, yet fear that you shall run.) She looked up from were she was resting, but did not turn around, she did not want it to be who she thought it might, but in her heart she knew that it was him, he had followed her from the watchtower to the gazebo.  
  
"Mankoi um lle soor?" (why do you follow?) He stood beside were she sat and looked over the railing, and looked over the peaceful terrain beneath them that seemingly stretched on forever, beyond Elven sight until it touched the very heavens, and continued even then into the stars and maybe it even covered the moon.  
  
"I wish to know why you ran." he spoke in common tongue, and looked at her. Her heart skipped and she felt herself blush.  
  
"I ran because I was in a hurry to get were I was going."  
  
"Yet you still found enough time to look down from the watch tower, and see if I was gone, then stop at this place were I could most easily have found you if I hadn't been looking for you in the first place."  
  
She stood and glared.  
  
"My business is my own. I thank you to not meddle in my affairs." She began to walk out of the gazebo when he caught her arm.  
  
"My Lady you have not yet told me your name. Isn't it rude to not tell?"  
  
"You should not have it and I do not intend to give it."  
  
"Then you shall remain a cat to me, graceful and full of life and fire." The young elf said with a gleam in his eye that made her heart skip again. "But you may call me Legolas."  
  
She snatched her arm away.  
  
"Nay, I shall call you a dog, for that is exactly how you behave. I hope that I may never lay my eyes on you again." she walked off, leaving the smirking elf behind her.  
  
FOOTNOTES:  
  
*Golems - Golems are monsters made of rock. They can come in all shapes and sizes.  
  
*Children's Clock has toned - the children's clock is used to send the children to school and to bed, when it strikes it is time for school, when it tones, it is the hour for bed.  
  
*Courm alkarinque alak - (Elvish) roughly translated to = (heart star rush). All Elves are born under a certain star, and every star is born with a mate, and that mate of the star is supposedly your life mate.  
  
*Ireon - the symbol of the Mirkwood elves, it contains a star with Ancient Elven writing on it that reads: (to friends I shall bear my arms in defense and crush all foes before me) 


	4. Of Small Birds and Homelands

Chapter one: Of Small Birds and Homelands  
  
Alceriniel ran through the great halls of the castle of Rivindell, three elf children closing in on her from behind. Of course if she had been running at her full pace, she would have been well out of sight by now, but they were playing, and taking advantage of her being older would for sure make the game less fun for both parties.  
  
She steered to the left one hand wrapped around a pillar. Using inertia to her advantage she changed direction, and abruptly ran into a wall.  
  
"Alcie!" the three children were jostling her back and forth. "Alcie come on! Get up Alcie! We want to go swimming"  
  
Alcie rubbed her sore head and smiled.  
  
"Okay, Okay." Alceriniel stood up and dusted herself off. "Go get changed and I'll take you down to the river." The kids all hugged her and ran off to the living quarters.  
  
***  
  
Alceriniel walked into her room and closed the door behind her. Her room overlooked the river and the pass that led up to the city. Her room was kept rather simple. A bed, and a dresser, a desk, table, and chairs. All made out of the same polished white wood, the floor was made of marble, it never needed cleaning, and it never scuffed. Everything was kept neat and orderly by the maids, the only thing that ever staid out was her journal. A leather bound un-ruled book.  
  
It was enchanted, the book. No matter how much she wrote in it, it would never be finished. She was given the book by her birth father, and had written in it ever sense she could write.  
  
She reached into her wardrobe and pulled out a pair of short-pants, and a cut-tunic, and began to dress herself.  
  
After she had finished, she sat down at her desk and looked upon her journal, flipping through the pages, until she magically came upon the first day she had arrived at Rivindell.  
  
'Both the architecture and the trees of this land speak to me in the ancient voices and tongues of the high elves. It is no surprise that one of the ancient ones does in fact live here. The people are very kind in deed, which I never had any worry of. For the first time in my life I have seen a human, in truth he was a Wizard, but he is the closest thing to a human that I have seen in all of my years. His name if I recall correctly and so hope that I do. Was Gandolf the Grey. Though I had never met him before he sure did seem to know me.  
  
'Elrond, my new Guardian, welcomed me warmly and introduced me to his daughter (my cousin). I feel that we shall grow close in later years. I don't remember having somebody so close to my age to talk to.  
  
'My trip was long, and I find both my body and mind to feel tired, so I shall now sleep. More news to come in the future I assure thee.'  
  
She had now been living with Elrond for over three hundred years, and in the coarse of this history she had shed all that was her sheltered lifestyle. She had seen many a dwarf and human, hunted Orcs with her people, and had talked with so many peoples that she could no longer remember how many different races she had seen.  
  
Alceriniel smiled and propped her chin upon her hands and looked out the window. She had taken to the children of Rivindell quickly, amusing herself with playing them and telling them stories from the books she had read, many she had even made up. She of course missed Lothiorien but didn't feel as if she needed to go back any time soon. Life went by so quickly here, with so many things to do.  
  
"ALCIEEEEEEE!"  
  
"I'm coming." Alceriniel stood up and closed her journal, a small strip of ribbon marking her place. And walked the children down to the river.  
  
***  
  
"NO FAIR ALCIE! YOU CANT TURN INTO A FISH WHEN WE ARE PLAYING CATCH!" The children chased after the small red fish that Alceriniel had turned herself into while playing a game with the children. The sun was high overhead and bright. It was the perfect day for a swim.  
  
"En! (Look!)" Cried Elou, the youngest boy. "Riders are approaching Rivindell, several in fact."  
  
Alceriniel quickly turned back into her Elven form. Sure enough there were several riders approaching the main gate. Four were elves. Three of which were guarding the youngest looking one, they bore the symbol of Mirkwood. Another rider was a dwarf, and the last, was a Human, who bore the shield of Gondor.  
  
She narrowed her eyes as she looked at the company, they were riding to far apart to be traveling together, and the distance she felt between them was like a ravine.  
  
"Children, hurry, go inside." Alceriniel ushered them out of the water. "This doesn't bode well." The children seeing the look on they're Alice's face didn't argue. They nodded and ran. Alceriniel however took on the form of a bird and flew over the wall to meet the housemaid who was greeting the travelers at the enterance.  
  
"M'Lady may I ask who those who visit in such strange company are? For there faces are strange to me." The maid nodded.  
  
"The Dwarf," she began with a tone of small disgust "Is Grimli." she added nothing else to the dwarf. "The human is Borimor. Heir to the throne of Gondor. And the Elves, three accompany the Prince Legolas of Mirkwood." The maid waited to see if any other questions were to be asked. Seeing that no more were, she took her leave.  
  
She had not seen well the faces of those who had taken shelter in the city of Rivindell, other than the hair color. But a human and a dwarf could easily be spotted, but the Elf she would not be able to tell the difference of.  
  
She made her way back to her quarters, suspecting that she should soon be called into a meeting with her guardian. Such accompany could only mean that Lord Elrond would be having council soon. She changed into her best tunic and tights, the tunic crimson with a golden trim, and her tights blood red. She pulled on her pair of deer skinned boots and ran a brush through her hair.  
  
Sure enough as the last brush fell through her hair, one of Elrond servants knocked at the door, and informed her that the Lord was waiting for her in the throne room.  
  
***  
  
To get to the throne room you must pass through several doors that recognize you as either friend or foe, if the doors or walls detect any malice in your heart, then you shall not be allowed to pass.  
  
Upon her arrival Elrond looked incredibly tired and weary. She bowed when she came up to the first step and awaited his voice to take shape in words.  
  
"Alcie..." he began, "What do you think of Rivindell?" he asked slowly.  
  
Alceriniel was taken aback by the question.  
  
"Rivindell is a proud city of the Elves, magnificent both in structure and the people that are ruled here and the king here is friend to all, even the dwarf, though we have had our quarrels with them in the past. Our walls are high, and our warriors plenty, in the unlikely case of a fight." She finished proudly.  
  
Elrond turned his head to look at her. "But what do you think of Rivindell? What does your heart call this city?" he stood and walked towards her. "What binds you to us so, that you would stay here when you could wander freely?" Her guardian placed one hand on her cheek and made her look him in the eye. "Alceriniel, you came to me but a child ignorant, yet at the same time so educated that you needed no teaching. I have thought of you more like a daughter in the past years that you have lived here, I wanted you to know that, and always think of Rivindell as your home." With that Elrond hugged her and kissed her on the forehead, and left her standing in the middle of the throne room. "I am holding council." he spoke as he reached the door for him to exit. "You are to come as one of Rivindell representatives, you have enough skill and knowledge of politics I believe." And with that, he left.  
  
"Atar... amin corm rip-Rivindell" she whispered into the air, but he was already gone.  
  
~*~*~*~*~  
  
Footnote:  
  
(Atar... amin corm rip-Rivindell) - Translates to Father... my heart flys with Rivindell 


	5. Of Orcs and Pain

Chapter 3  
  
'The young Elf plagues my thoughts. I will admit that he is beautiful, and he is also, kind. I cannot figure out why I was so defensive when we met for the first time. That clash that happened when I passed him, I wonder what It could have ment?  
  
Gandalf refreshed me completely about the war and the history behind the ring. I cannot help but feel the foreboding whenever the ring is mentioned. A dark cloud has begun to build around Rivendell. I can only hope that Elven magic can hide its evil from the Wraths that seek the ring. At least they cannot see it for now.'  
  
She closed the book and secured the leather strips that held the book closed. Long have the candles in Rivendell been lit, and many hours it has been sense the sun had crept behind the trees, to regions unknown to all, even the Elves.  
  
'I will discover those lands one day,' she thought unto herself. 'I will travel to the very ends of this earth in search of new things.' a smile crept across her face.  
  
She sat on her small balcony and looked up at the moon, so bright, so full. Its light danced across the lake below her and it brought a smile to her face. She took a deep breath and whispered the words  
  
"Across the farthest ocean, and near the closest shore The faeries of the night began to wander for, There mother the mistress moon, and vanished from there sky, and they went a-looking across the endless sky, They're journey took them far, across the largest sea, and then one day, they came to ask of me, I said Look above, my children from the sky Your mother never left, she watches from up high  
  
With happiness they flew up to be with her, and they never came down and still they sit with her, They follow her around the earth, wherever she may go, For she is there eternal mother, and with her seeds they sow."*  
  
"Alce-sister tell the story again." She jumped and turned to see a small elf child-a girl-standing in her night gown at the balcony door.  
  
"Elena," Alceriniel said with a soft smile, "It is late, you should not be out of your room, you could get into trouble."  
  
Elena smiled and shifted her weight from foot to foot.  
  
"I couldn't sleep..." she whispered in a tiny voice, "I dreamt of a shadow, and it was following you Alcie-sister, it was trying to destroy you, and I was worried. So I snuck out here to check on you."  
  
Alceriniel was touched by the Childs concern for her welfare, and picked her up.  
  
"What if I took you back to your room and told you a story to help you fall asleep?" She asked the small child, who nodded and hugged her with such fierceness that she could hardly breath.  
  
She lifted Elena upon her back and began to sneak her back to her room. She could get in trouble for having a child out at such an hour, not to mention what punishment would fall upon Elena if she was caught out of bed, they of course wouldn't harm the child, but rather put her on some kind of cleaning duty.  
  
Elena kept the Elven cloke wrapped around the both of them as Alceriniel ran through the hallways. She made her way up to the top of the guard tower and looked down.  
  
"You remember what to do right?" Elena nodded and locked her arms around Alceriniel neck. "One, two, three" She jumped.  
  
The fell from the watchtower, which was a five story drop, not even an elf could have survived this kind of jump unscathed. But Alceriniel had one small bit of help on her side.  
  
She spread her arms wide and felt the shift* coming on, she was willing herself to become a falcon, strong and proud, king of the skies. Her arms changed first feathers sprouting out from her extended arms and lengthening. But there she held it back, to make the change go completely would be to kill the small Elven child on her back, though a falcon is strong, it could not carry a child in its talons.  
  
With her spread wings Alceriniel was able to glide and land not to harshly on the ground by the servant's sleeping quarters. Luckily Elena's families apartment was on the first floor.  
  
Alceriniel could never figure out how the child got to her quarters unnoticed but figured that there had to be some logical explanation for it.  
  
***  
  
With the story told and the child asleep, Alceriniel took her leave out of Elena's window. She claimed up the guard tower steps and perched herself on outer wall that surrounded Rivendell. She reached out, stretching her arm as far as she could, and touched the branches of the closest tree, leaves feeling soft and almost sensual against her skin.  
  
With one leap she was in the trees branches, and speaking with the old tree in a long forgotten tongue known to none but the elves. She slid down the branches and landed silently on the leaf strewn floors.  
  
Orcs were out this night, she could smell them on the air, and feel there footsteps in the earth. She reached into the inner linings of her tunic, which she hadn't taken off and pulled forth a dagger.  
  
But something else was out tonight, she didn't know just what. But she could feel it. It wasn't evil, in fact she felt light radiating from it. But evil wore many masks, Saruman the White radiated light, and he was evil beyond question.  
  
A flash caught the night and an arrow wized through the darkness, if she hadn't been so quick, it would have been buried in her head.  
  
"YEE!"* She squeaked and practically jumped out of her skin.  
  
"Isn't it a bit late for a young lady such as yourself to be out?" She spun around to the source of the sound.  
  
"YOU?!?" she exclaimed as the young elf made his way out of the darkness and into the small silver of light that crept through the trees. "What in Gondors name are you doing out hear? Don't you know that its dangerous here? These woods are swarming with Orcs!"  
  
"Best you follow your own advice my dear sly cat." She glared but he took no notice.  
  
"Well at least I'm familiar with these woods!" she yelped at him.  
  
"Well at least I'm not talking so loud that I could notify the entire Orcs infestation!" He screeched.  
  
Roars came from the distance, and she gave him a look of contempt.  
  
"You were saying?"  
  
"Are you armed?"  
  
"I have but a Dagger." he handed her one of his Elven knifes and she took it without question.  
  
"You my dog friend go and alert the scouts of these intruders."  
  
"No my sly cat you go and alert them."  
  
"... no you."  
  
"YOU!"  
  
"I refuse to go!" she yelled at him. He rolled his eyes.  
  
"Well I'm not going."  
  
"Then we will both die here."  
  
"Fine."  
  
"Fine!" She just realized how stupid this argument was, and it was to late to run for it.  
  
She jumped at the nearest Orcs and stabbed him with both the dagger and the knife, then just as quickly jumped at another. Her fair Dog friend was shooting off arrows left and right, even stabbing the occasional close Orcs with the arrow before shooting it, when all the arrows in his quiver were spent he took to falling Orcs with his knife.  
  
Many Orcs lay fallen on the floor around the two young warriors feet. But still more came.  
  
"We have to get out of here!" She yelled to her young companion as she swung around and buried her dagger in the throat of another Orcs, she tossed the Elf his knife back and picked up the Orc's crude sword and began to hack away.  
  
"Get up the tree, I'll cover you."  
  
"No I'll cover you."  
  
"In Elrond name would you stop that?!?" he cried in desperation. "Watch out!" He yelled, but it was to late. Alceriniel hadn't seen the Orcs with the heavy chain whip, he slung his weapon at her.  
  
The whip wrapped around her midsection and she couldn't get free. With one sound jerk of the chain, she was throne against the side of a tree with a sickening thump. But her Elf friend jumped right to the rescue and cut down her attacker, giving her time to free herself from her bonds.  
  
She stood and picked up a new weapon from a fallen Orcs, and continued to hack away.  
  
"Diola lle mellon."* She breathed to her companion.  
  
"I think that there lines are weakening." He spoke as he gracefully spun around and stabbed two Orcs in the throat. Heavy footsteps sounded upon his words in defiance.  
  
"Please reassure me that that isn't what I think that it is." She whispered, her back against his.  
  
"I don't know." His eyes narrowed in the darkness, even with his Elven sight he could see nothing.  
  
With a flash an arrow shot out from the darkness and buried itself in her companions shoulder. His eyes opened at the shock of being hit, then quickly regained his bearings and pulled out the arrow and strung it on his bow.  
  
"Cooshee! (dog)" She turned to see her wombed friend the womb was indeed deep, he needed to get back to Rivendell. The other Orcs had fled when this new terror approached, obviously laden with bows or arrows. "Cooshee, you return to the castle and inform them. I'll stay here." He looked at her for a long moment. He knew if anyone at this point had to go, it would be her. "The castle is not fifteen minutes away run!"  
  
He looked her in the eyes and then away and back again, and lifted his hand to touch her face.  
  
"Cormlle naa tanya tel'raa,*" he patted her cheek. "Be safe until my return." then he sped off into the forest.  
  
She smiled as she watched his footsteps fade and waited for the new challenger.  
  
"Show yourself foul demon! I wish to see the face of the one I mean to kill."  
  
And so he did, the largest Orcs that she had ever lived to see, twice her size and three of her in width. Her mouth dropped open and she couldn't help but feel a bit stupid for having run off the elf so soon.  
  
In one hand there was a longbow and at a pouch on his side there were arrows, the bow was clearly to small for him to handle with his big unruly arms, but then she saw a smaller par protruding from underneath the main two.  
  
Alceriniel puffed up to make herself look bigger, and Exhaled slowly, biding as much time as she could, finally she spoke:  
  
"Caela ie'lle (Have at thee)." and the thing charged.  
  
Long did it feel she fought the battle, and her muscles burned from the effort, she couldn't get close enough to attack him with the dagger, all she could really do was dodge and parry arrows that the thing would fire from time to time.  
  
'If only I could shoot a fireball, one little fireball.' But she dared not, the chance of the fire spreading was to great and she knew not how to create a ward so that the fire wouldn't spread.  
  
"YEE!" She narrowly missed getting hit by an arrow for the millionth time that night. She jumped, much higher than even an elf should by any rights, and grabbed ahold of a high branch and pulled herself up.  
  
The thing, whatever it was, was now trying to take down the tree completely. That was one thing that she couldn't allow. She threw the dagger at the eyes of the monster which screamed and threw its head back in pain.  
  
"That's my Q!" She landed gracefully on the forest floor and bolted towards the castle, her elf had held true to his words she knew, when she saw the guards running in her direction. "Its back there!" She yelled and kept running towards the castle, noting the dead Orc's laying in the solders wake.  
  
'So that's what took them so long.' she thought to herself. Running into the carnage. The sounds of fighting were up ahead as well as behind. She ran towards the front leaving the rather large beast to the other guards.  
  
When she happened upon the battlefield she saw three Elves fighting a swarm of Orcs. But the one that caught her attention was  
  
"Cooshee!" She yelped happily, he turned and smiled.  
  
"Cath?" he turned and saw her and a smile crossed his face, but when he saw the look of horror that suddenly crossed hers it was to late.  
  
"Look out!" She screamed, that was the last thing that he heard, before he suddenly plunged into darkness.  
  
~End Chapter THREEEEEEE  
  
(((_^));;;; Authors Note: yeah, I know MONDO misspelling *sighs* but this computer doesn't have Microsoft Word on it yet, I WILL DOWNLOAD IT I SWEAR  
  
Please R&R or I will probably stop writing the fic.  
  
FOOTNOTES:  
  
*Shift - name that Polymorphs use to describe the change from one skin to another.  
  
*Song/Faeries of the Night - one of many tales (told in song) used to describe the stars in the sky.  
  
*YEE! - Roughly translated to EEK!  
  
*Diola lle mellon - thank you friend  
  
*Cormlle naa tanya tel'raa - your heart is that of a lion 


	6. Of Confusion and Heartache

Chapter Four  
  
  
  
Alceriniel sat on the edge of the bed and looked down at the prone figure beside her.  
  
"Cooshee.." her eyes misted over and she wiped at them, annoyed. It was her fault that he was laying there now, it was her fault he was hurt. ".... Cooshee..."  
  
She had carried him back to the castle herself, and she had also tended his wombs. She hadn't even left his side.  
  
Alceriniel watched his bandaged chest rise and fall from his steady breathing. One bandage covered the majority of his back, and another covered his shoulder. He would be healed completely in a matter of days, of course. Yet another small perk from being an Elf.  
  
Her eyes ran across his nicely toned naked upper half--he still had on his leggings--he was beautiful, even by means of an elf, exceedingly beautiful. His long blond hair was a definite mark of his heritage from Mirkwood, along with his eyes. They were, she realized silver, not light blue. She had much time to study them.  
  
She stood from the bed and walked to the window, the suns morning rays spread there fingers over the top of the forest and reached out to touch the marble city of Rivendell. The birds, had been awake for hours singing to the morning sun, thanking it for warming there eggs long enough for them to get something to eat.  
  
"Urwen ainatar, poldore an se moor. Seere an ilya mi i arda quende."* There was a grunt behind her.  
  
"I didn't know you studied Religion." She froze and felt her eyes mist over, but she was able to contain the tears, partly because of the fact that she had already let the tears fall, and partly because she suddenly felt more angry than sad.  
  
"YOU WERE AWAKE????" she screeched. She stormed up to him and smacked him in the back of the head.  
  
"Hey I'm injured!" He said with a rueful smile. He looked up expecting to see her angry face, but was taken aback when he saw that she was about to cry.  
  
"Do you know how long I've been waiting for you to wake up? Do you know how long I've been waiting to see if you were going to be okay? Do you have any idea how worried I've been?" She was shaking visibly and her hands were clenched into fists.  
  
The young elf was taken aback, most elves remained calm and collected, but she was so... open with her emotions.  
  
A clear tear rolled down her cheek and hit the marble floor at Alceriniel feet, upon impact the small drop shattered into several smaller drops, you could almost hear it when it hit.  
  
He reached out and took her hand in his, she resisted but he wouldn't let go.  
  
"Amin hiraetha*." He whispered and moved her long brown hair out of her face so he could cup her face with his hand. This time when a tear fell from her eye he caught it with his finger. "I was thoughtless."  
  
"No..." she began, regaining her composure and taking a step back. "I over reacted. I... I'm sorry, I wont bother you again." She turned to leave when he caught her arm.  
  
"But, your not bothering me."  
  
***  
  
Alceriniel closed the door behind her. What the hell had happened in there? She completely lost her composure and started crying, and on top of that, just being around Cooshee made her heart pound.  
  
She took a deep breath, and made her way to her chambers.  
  
***  
  
The young Elf watched her retreating figure leave and sat back down on the bed.  
  
She was a strange creature, notably strong, but as timid as a deer when it came to feelings. A smile crossed his lips. Who could she be? He looked at his bandages and tried to recall what exactly had happened the night before that made him black out.  
  
Seeing the wrapping on his shoulder his eyebrow lifted confusedly. He undid the tie on it gently and pulled it off.  
  
It wasn't a bandage, it was a small hair-sash, red with small letters written in elfish in the corner.  
  
"Tere i uur i suul oira tamin esse*"  
  
****************************************************  
  
FOOTNOTES  
  
*Urwen ainatar, poldore an se moor. Seere an ilya mi i arda quende - A prayer to an ancient sun god of the morning.  
  
*Amin hiraetha - I'm sorry  
  
*tere i uur i suul oira tamin esse - through the fire the spirits eternal forge begins 


	7. Of Showers and Peeping Toms

Chapter five:  
  
Alceriniel moved quickly back to her chambers to change and wash, not only did she have Cooshee's blood on her, but she also was covered in Orc slime... and... whatever the hell that other... thing... was.  
  
She pushed open the doors to her 'families' living area, also known as a laara*. Each family in Rivindell had something like large house, at least the ones that the higher level society had anyway. Her 'room' however was located further down the hall. The living area branched off into three different areas aside from the main hallway or 'den' as it was later called. One hallway opened up into the bathhouses, another into the family study, and the third branched off into the living and guest quarters. The living quarters were also connected to the main outer hallway in order to save time when having to get somewhere, but the only way to get to the bathhouse was through the main hallway.  
  
Because Alceriniel was her own family, yet like a second daughter to Elrond, she had one of the best laara to herself. She had, of course decorated the housing area, using all the colors of autumn, or the time of yaavie* as some people called it. The whole place was decorated in reds, oranges, and yellows.  
  
Even the floor was made into a mosaic of fallen colored leaves, it was a shame to be a floor, and she always felt bad about stepping on such a work of art. But she couldn't do much about it seeing as how the whole design stretched from wall to wall, if she didn't walk on it from time to time she would smell worse than an Orc.  
  
But the strange thing about the room was the color of the walls. In amidst the reds and oranges the walls were painted a light blue, and the paint wasn't even really paint, it was a kind of powder that had been placed on the walls just so, that it looked like it was made of puffs of cloud.  
  
The room was definitely a wonder to behold.  
  
But like with many things in life if you have seen it every day in most of your common life it would begin to loose interest over time. Yet after more than 300 years, the room still memorized her, and she was more than happy to sit on the cushions and look out the sunroof that covered the ceiling of the main hallway.  
  
Walking softly on the mosaic floor she hurried into the bathhouse. ***  
  
The young Elf sat on the edge of the bed thinking, legs swinging to and fro absently. On his lap, spread out was Cath's hair sash.  
  
He ran his finger over the soft material with one of his long slender fingers. It was clearly made of some kind of silk. And upon close inspection the cloth also was made of crushed rubies to make the color, instead of the normal dyes that Elves would use.  
  
It was clear to him that she was from a state of high authority in Rivendell, but he had never seen or heard of her anywhere else that he had ventured. Her hair was the dark color of those from Rivindell but her eyes were not, they were aquamarine and somewhat dark. But the Elf's of Rivendell eyes stuck either to gray or brown mostly. Of course there were a few exceptions, but he couldn't figure out were she could get the colors to make that shade.  
  
It is possible that her family had moved here on there own, already rich or one of them a diplomat. But she didn't have that kind of feel about her. Most girls who were raised in a diplomatic position would know who he was. He had seen the way those girls acted, and wasn't the least bit impressed or flattered by it.  
  
Even Elves were swayed by power, even the Elven race had those that were frowned upon by there own kind. There were those who were born into life and chose to make there immortal light seem dim.  
  
But, Cath wasn't like those girls, she wasn't going around looking for somebody to marry in a high position, in fact, from the way she acted she seemed like she didn't even know what love was, she was so oblivious to any kind of affection that she felt from or for anybody that was more than friendly.  
  
He had seen the way she had run at any sign of affection that he had shown her. But then again he was being hasty. He suddenly felt really bad about moving so quickly with the girl. Though he didn't mean to or failed to realize it, he had probably thrown himself at her, so-to-speak.  
  
He stood up, ignoring the pain from both his shoulder and his back and pulled on his green tunic.  
  
He had some explaining to do.  
  
***  
  
Alceriniel walked into her room with a towel wrapped around her. Her wet hair clinging to her bare shoulders and the sides of her face. She quickly shook her head from side to side, spreading small droplets of water here and there. And tossed her towel down on the bed.  
  
A nice hot bath was just what she had needed. Now that she was clean, and tingling from the heated bath, she felt that she had more strength. Her muscles didn't ace anymore, and she didn't feel stingy.  
  
She reached into her closet and pulled out a pair of leggings and a tunic, along with some undergarments.  
  
Tossing aside the main clothing for now, she began to put on her underwear. Red silk with white lace. Then she buttoned up her matching bra.  
  
"Cath I-!" The door swung open.  
  
Cooshee's eyes opened up as he stood there eyes wide, and face bright crimson, Alceriniel froze in her position, clad only in her undergarments.  
  
". . ."  
  
". . ."  
  
Alceriniel was the first to react.  
  
"YEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!" She screeched and dived behind the bed. The young elf turned around and faced the door, face brighter than a raging fire.  
  
"S-so sorry!" he stammered. Looking down at the floor with wide eyes. "Didn't know-Should have knocked-SORRY!"  
  
Alceriniel was crouched down behind the bed.  
  
"What were you thinking?" She asked breathlessly, her face was to flushed.  
  
"I was coming to apologize!" His back spoke. "Because I've been making you uncomfortable!"  
  
She raised an eyebrow.  
  
"Wha?" She began, but he continued.  
  
"I've been throwing myself at you, I didn't know that I was doing it at the time but that's still no reason to have done it!" Then he was quiet.  
  
IHe came here to apologize?I she thought to herself.  
  
". its okay." She saw him lift his head as if surprised.  
  
"Are you-?"  
  
"No really its okay, you didn't mean to, and I didn't notice you doing it so, its okay."  
  
IShe didn't notice?I  
  
"Well. that's. that's all." He said dumbfounded.  
  
IHe apologized?I  
  
IShe didn't notice?I  
  
"So. I'll be going now." The young Elf said.  
  
"Okay."  
  
"Bye."  
  
"C-ya, and put something on your shoulder."  
  
The door closed.  
  
Alceriniel looked at the closed door for a miniute, and slowly proceded to get dressed.  
  
Footnotes  
  
*laara - literally translated into Flat (yeah like the apartment flat, you got a problem with that? I haven't had a decent nights sleep in five days, you try being creative when you've only had an hour of sleep and just got home from school (((.)) )  
  
*yaavie- Autumn  
  
  
  
AuThOrS note  
  
(((_^))  
  
hehe hehe hehe (Mai emoticon looks just like me, hair in face and elf ears. well okay I don't have elf ears but oh well (((_^)))  
  
Does anybody notice anything different?  
  
MICROSOFT WORD IS WORKING  
  
YAY *claps and cheers* That's right SPELL CHECK!  
  
More to come I promise! (((_~)) 


	8. Of Crystal Rooms and Unknown Guardians

Chapter Six:  
  
"Alceriniel? Alceriniel?"  
  
The girl heard somebody speaking to her, rousing her from her slumber.  
  
"Alceriniel? You need to wake up." Her eyelids slid open, sight still fuzzy from sleep. Sitting up Alceriniel began to rub her eyes, it was to bright.  
  
"Its okay, the light wont hurt your eyes dear." She looked around, she was in a room that looked like it was carved out of a giant diamond. It looked like some kind of palace, pillars, chairs, tables, even the throne were carved out of the shiny, clear stone.  
  
Outside of the palace were clouds. And above was the moon, shining through the crystal ceiling. But this was small compared to the person who stood in front of her.  
  
She was tall, and had the ears of an Elf. Her bangs which hung over one eye long, and were short on the other side of her face were colored a dark blue. Her hair was the color silver, and her eyes were also blue, but a shade that was both at the darkest and lightest spectrum of the color at the same time. She was wearing a long dark blue dress that had a low squared off neckline, and at the shoulders there was a cape. A small silver chain came down from the shoulders and connected in a small silver broach. It held the symbol of the gods, two crescent moons facing each other so that a circle was formed in the middle of them, and in that circle there was a six pointed star.  
  
Alceriniel said nothing, but stared at the being in front of her. She was earth real even for an Elf, her light outshone even that of her mother which was the brightest that she had ever seen.  
  
"Alceriniel, do not fear me, I bear you no harm. I am your guardian star, Dayanta. I come bearing to you orders of great importance. You must follow what I say without question my dear Alceriniel, or those that you love will perish."  
  
She nodded, but said nothing though she had never seen Dayanta before, she knew that she could trust her. An air of friendly memory surrounded the guardian and wrapped itself around Alceriniel warmly.  
  
"Tomorrow when you awake, the council of Elrond will meet. You have been asked to attend the meeting by 'Atar.' They will discuss the ring of power which Gandalf has spoken of to you before."  
  
Alceriniel nodded.  
  
"Though you shall be tempted you must not join the fellowship that will be formed to protect the ring bearer. Your heart means well but if you wish to keep them safe they must not know you to be among their number.  
  
'After they leave, you will follow them a day after. You will take on the shape of a bird. You must tell none were you are going, and take only what you need, you must travel light.  
  
'You will follow the fellowship to Lothiorien, and there you shall leave them. They must not see your face for fear of recognition. After they leave you shall make to the country of Rohan, and stay in their capital Edoras with there king Theoden. Four members of the fellowship will meet you there, again you must not show your face."  
  
"What am I to do once I get to Edoras and the Fellowship comes?"  
  
"You must follow them, there shall be a battle, and you must stay alive with them. You must go to Mordor."  
  
"Why must I go to Mordor?" Alceriniel asked. Dayanta looked away.  
  
"Many things you will learn over the course of this journey, and I shall see you again to answer questions, but this one is not in my power to tell, I am your guardian star Alceriniel, I do what is needed to protect you, and it is for your own protection that I tell you naught of what your destiny will bring in the end."  
  
Alceriniel looked down at the transparent floor and into the clouds below.  
  
"How can I just leave? What will Atar think?" she whispered.  
  
"Atar will understand." Dayanta assured her.  
  
Alceriniel sat back, legs tucked underneath her, and bit her thumbnail.  
  
"Please you must understand what great importance it is that you do this task assigned to you. Your sword skill is hardly matched, and your skill with the bow is true. But your heart so pure is were your real strength lies. You must remember this Alceriniel."  
  
Somewhere far away the sun was rising over the clouds, and Alceriniel knew that she was about to leave.  
  
"No one is making you do this task Alceriniel, no one will force you to do it. But if you do not, the whole of middle earth will crumble and no one would be spared from the carnage that would ensue."  
  
Alceriniel nodded but said nothing.  
  
"Now you must wake."  
  
***  
  
Alceriniel awoke to the sound of knocking on her bedroom door.  
  
"Miss, you have been summoned to the Council of Elrond. It is to begin at high noon."  
  
Alceriniel looked out of the window and at the sky. It would take place in three hours.  
  
"Tell Elrond that I shall be there."  
  
"Yes M'Lady."  
  
***********************************************************************  
  
(((_^))  
  
hehe hehe yay  
  
*is in love w/ spellcheck* 


	9. Of Councils and True Identities

Chapter Seven:  
  
She wore the colors of Rivindell, brown and purple. Colors of autumn. She wore, for one of the few times in her life, a dress. A deep purple with an earthy brown hemline. Her long dark hair was piled on top of her head with a leaf shaped clip, revealing the curve of her neck and delicate looking yet powerful shoulders.  
  
Chooshee was there to. She knew he would be. He had come with the people of Mirkwood, what his part in this unfolding play was she didn't know. He was sitting across from her with two other Mirkwood elves, she didn't know which one was prince Legolas.  
  
Elrond was next to her, and to his other side were two Hobbits, across from the hobbits were the dwarves, Grimli, Gloin, and some other dwarf that she wasn't familiar with. There were others representing Rivendell other than herself. Most of whom she had only talked to or seen in passing, big diplomats didn't have much time to talk to other immortals. Then there was the humans Borimor, and Aragorn, who were sitting in there own respective areas.  
  
"It is a gift!" Borimor said, "For many years we have used the blood of our people to protect Gondor, give this gift to us, Let us weld it!"  
  
"You cannot weld it, no one but the dark lord can." Aragorn stood, countering Borimor's words.  
  
Alceriniel wasn't paying much attention, she knew how this was going to turn out in the end, they both would probably end up taking whoever would bear the ring to Mordor. The adventure did appeal to her, but she wasn't as tempted to join as she would have been. After all she was going to be joining the company without them knowing anyway.  
  
"He is the heir to the throne of Gondor, and your king." Cooshee stood up, in Aragon's defense. She looked up at him in surprise, she hadn't expected that.  
  
"Ham undu Legolas*." Alceriniel Raised her eyebrow and looked at Cooshee in shock. HE was Legolas? He was the prince of Mirkwood. She felt sick.  
  
Elrond must have sensed her uneasiness because he lent near her and excused her.  
  
Legolas watched her leave, frowning.  
  
***  
  
Alceriniel put as much distance between her and the Council as possible before she started to retch.  
  
It wasn't just the fact that her Cooshee was Legolas, it was that damn ring. It chanted to her in a tongue that she couldn't recognize, but the very feel of the language was enough to make her vomit.  
  
She whipped her mouth, though she hadn't thrown up anything and sat down on a white bench.  
  
Cooshee was Legolas? Now that she thought of it, it didn't seem like much of a surprise. He was young and clearly he came from noble birth if you knew what to look for.  
  
.. But CHOOSHEE a PRINCE? And to top it all off the Prince of MIRKWOOD?  
  
She rested her face in her hands. No way in hell was she doing what she thought she was doing. No way in hell.  
  
She looked down at her hands for a moment and thought.  
  
I cant be falling for him, at least I think I cant be falling for him. I don't know what its like to fall for someone. At least this is what all those Ladies in books go through when they were falling for somebody.  
  
She groaned and hid her face in her hands.  
  
"Noooo. noooo. nooooo." She moaned into her hands. "Why does this have to happen to me?" She was hit by another wave of nausea, and keeled over again, nothing came up though.  
  
Alceriniel curled up into a little ball and fell asleep on the bench.  
  
***  
  
She awoke to the feel of long slender fingers running through her hair. The moon was high and still full above her, and the feeling of a warm safeness that she couldn't remember feeling in centuries surrounded her in a tingly sensation.  
  
She snuggled closer to Legolas who smiled down at her half awake form. But she wouldn't look at him.  
  
"Cath." he whispered. She sat up slowly but still didn't look at him.  
  
"You are Legolas." It was a statement not a question. But he still said.  
  
"Yes. I am." She looked down at her hands, her fallen hair hid her face from his eyes. Legolas reached out a hand and turned her chin to face him.  
  
"I wasn't trying to hide it from you. Its just. we never got the chance to introduce ourselves properly."  
  
"You joined the fellowship didn't you?" Alceriniel asked, avoiding the topic.  
  
Legolas looked away.  
  
"I want to here you say it. please."  
  
"Yes." It was a whisper, none but an elf could have heard it.  
  
Her hands gripped the dress she was wearing, and she gritted her teeth.  
  
"You cant go."  
  
"I have to, I have sworn my services to the aid of the Ring bearer." Alceriniel turned to him, eyes full of pain and anger.  
  
"You'll be killed!" She cried.  
  
Legolas was taken aback by her sudden surge of emotion.  
  
"Don't worry, Aragorn will be there, you know as well as I do that he has more skill and cunning than that of a fox. And Grimli will also be there, he is talented. for a dwarf." He patted her on the back, but she stood up and walked to the other side of the small garden.  
  
He watched her thinking, long hair that had escaped the clip in the top of her head falling around her shoulders gracefully. The way that her hand rested just below her lower lip while she was in deep thought, and how she paced back and forth. Eyes down the whole time, deep pools of aquamarine.  
  
Legolas stood and walked up to her, and lifted the clip off of her head, sending a cascade of hair around her shoulders.  
  
She stopped shocked by the sudden invasion of her space. Legolas tilted her chin up with one long finger. She didn't resist his touch, or him taking her hand with his other free one.  
  
"I'll be fine." He said softly. And she wished she could believe him..  
  
  
  
FOOTNOTES  
  
*Ham undu Legolas - Sit down Legolas 


	10. Of Those that Leave and Those That Stay ...

Chapter 8  
  
  
  
The fellowship gathered outside the gates of Rivendell. All would be on foot, a group of horses would be noticed easily by any of Saruman's spies. Many were gathered at the leaving of these brave souls. Including Elrond and his true daughter.  
  
Alceriniel was watching from a guard tower, trying to sum up the courage to go down there. She raised a hand instinctively to her forehead and touched the spot that was still warm from the soft kiss that Legolas had planted there.  
  
It was a friendly, reassuring kiss. But it still to her burned from the sensation of his lips on her body.  
  
She looked out at the window at the young men and wizard saying fond farewells to those about them. Alceriniel's finger rested just below her lower lip, just the way it always did when she was in deep thought.  
  
She was in love with him. She knew. She didn't know how she knew or why she loved him. But she did. She couldn't deny that fact, if she did she felt as though her heart would shut down from lack of attention.  
  
Her recently brushed hair fell about her shoulders and back like a dark shiny mane. She ran her fingers through it nervously. She had so much to prepare for.  
  
She had packed all that she would carry. She didn't need much, she could hunt and gather food on her own. She would only take what was most necessary.  
  
She looked back down and nearly fell over when she realized that they had departed.  
  
"Gach!" the noise escaped her lips as she ran down the guard tower steps after him, exiting out one of the side doors away from the people.  
  
She ran through a shortcut in the woods and under an old fallen tree where she and the Elven children were at one point going to built a small play house, but with the Orcs roaming around lately.  
  
Over and around bushes, narrowly missing trees, and finally. She ran into them.  
  
*SMACK*  
  
. literally.  
  
"So sorry." She apologized to the young hobbit that she had come to know as Frodo, he made a nice cushion to catch her when she fell.  
  
"Cath?" Legolas was looking down at her.  
  
"Eh. heh." She scratched the back of her head absently. "I didn't get to say goodbye." He helped her up and she helped the poor hobbit that had broke her fall.  
  
"Again, sorry."  
  
"Its okay." Frodo dusted himself off.  
  
"I wanted to wish you luck." She said hurriedly, and curtsied.  
  
Aragorn and Grimli snickered. Legolas gave a somewhat bewildered and amused smile.  
  
"Um. well. I guess I shall see you later then." Legolas nodded. "Okay bye I guess." She stood there for a moment and turned to leave.  
  
"Cath." She turned around with a raised eyebrow. Legolas was smiling. "Can you keep something for me?" She shrugged.  
  
"I guess. If its not going to be to much trouble, for me that is." Legolas rolled his eyes and took off his silver chained necklace. Hanging from it was a small diamond with what looked like a small leaf in it.  
  
"What is that thing?" she asked holding it up, Legolas shook his head and walked towards her.  
  
"My good men I think it best that we go on ahead, Sir Legolas can catch up on his on I fare it." Gandalf said with a smile. The other men departed leaving the two alone.  
  
Once out of site Legolas took the necklace from her and put it around her neck.  
  
"The diamond is the stone of the Elves, and the leaf is from the oldest tree in Mirkwood, that the palace is built around. It is so tall that its branches reach even above that of the castle ceiling. Its branches stretch out and are the first things to see the morning sun from such a distance, and the last things to say goodbye to it at dusk. Even the highest branches, leading to the very top of the tree itself are strong enough to hold at least two mortal men. It has been there ever sense the Elves of Mirkwood have been and long before. This leaf came from the very top of that tree, one could only guess what knowledge and wisdom it could tell at will?"  
  
"It would tell of the first elves, and how it grew from a sapling, it could go on for days telling stories of lovers making vows under the tree, and of vicious battles. It would keep secrets of all kinds of animals, and hold homes for many. It could tell the very making of the earth itself and still have more wonders to tell. Stories, legends, and song would flow as freely from the tree as a spring would freely flow from under a waterfall, it could go on for centuries and still have not told half of what it had seen." Alceriniel answered.  
  
Legolas looked at her with the necklace around her neck. The royal heirloom of the kingdom of Mirkwood. He wasn't going to let on how precious a gift he had given her. She was a shy girl, and to know that he had given her such a gift would probably scare her.  
  
"I will protect it with my life Cooshee." She said with a smile. He patted her on the head.  
  
"I'll see you," he said. "I promise."  
  
"I'll see you soon." She said waving as he ran up the dirt path. "Sooner than you think."  
  
  
  
FOOTNOTES:  
  
HAHAHAH no footnotes this time MWAHAHAHAHA 


	11. Of Old and New Fathers

Chapter 9:  
  
Alceriniel stood in the throne room of Rivendell before Elrond. He was calm and poised, sitting upon his throne he looked like some kind of god.  
  
"Atar." she began, not quite sure where to start. He lifted his chin a little, without words telling her that he had her undivided attention.  
  
She took a shaky breath and began.  
  
"Atar, I must leave Rivendell. But, however, you are still my Guardian. I could not go without your blessing, and if you wish me not to go, Atar, I will not betray your wishes."  
  
Elrond raised an eyebrow.  
  
"Where pray tell, do you wish to embark to? And how long before you must depart?"  
  
"Nay, Atar, I fear that I cannot tell you were I am to go, and I was planning to leave tomorrow."  
  
"Why so suddenly must you leave us? Do you no longer wish to reside in the walls of Rivendell?"  
  
Alceriniel shook her head quickly.  
  
"No, Atar. My heart will always be with Rivendell, you know this!" a smile crossed Elrond's lips and she knew that he was trying to tease her. "Why I must leave so suddenly I also cannot say."  
  
"For a Journey to be so secret it must be very important."  
  
"I cannot say my Lord."  
  
Elrond drummed his fingers on the arm rests.  
  
"You know that you are free to go and come when you please, my blessing is not required for such things."  
  
Alceriniel looked down.  
  
"I was hoping you would turn down my offer, I fear the path that I am to follow Atar."  
  
Elrond stood up and placed a hand on Alceriniel's shoulder.  
  
"Strength, my child, comes from here." He pointed to her forehead. "And you are the most educated young Elf that I have ever seen. If you fear anything fear your head exploding from overfilling." She smiled. "Where ever your path may lead you, no matter what road you take. I hope that you remember that Rivendell will always welcome you with warm, caring arms."  
  
Alceriniel nodded and hugged Elrond tight, and he placed a hand on her head.  
  
"You will be safe, this I know. I wish you to have something." He walked behind his throne and pulled out a long, slender dagger. "This is a weapon of ages, of old kings. It will aid you well." Alceriniel shook her head.  
  
"Such a gift should stay within the immediate family, it should be given to the daughter of the one who wielded it." She said with a smile, Anwen was after all the future Queen of Rivendell, such things should be left to her.  
  
"Tis' true that such things should be kept in the family. Your father* asked me to give this to you when the time in your life came for you to set out on your own, it just came. a bit later that we all expected it to. Loyalty is a good virtue to have Alceriniel, but for it to be so strong that you would rather spend your life within walls rather than going out to achieve your own dreams is not what the ones you love want." He handed her the blade.  
  
"My father?"  
  
Elrond nodded.  
  
"He was a great man, few like him. He was half elf, half human. Unfortunately he was not immortal. He lived through many wars and saw many things. He fell in love with your mother and fathered you, before being slain in battle. He was a good man, honest and true. You are your fathers daughter Alceriniel. You will be great."  
  
She said nothing.  
  
"I look nothing like my Mother." She said softly. "My hair is dark, though my eyes bear the blue of those of Lothiorien there is a green to them which is unnatural to any Elven race that I have ever heard of. My ears can change from points to round, and my lips are fuller than that of a normal elf." She turned away. "I am my fathers daughter, though I do not know who he is, I am a bastard child nonetheless."  
  
Elrond looked as though he had been slapped by the last sentence.  
  
"Atar, you have been like a father to me, and I would have given anything to have been your child. If you could accept me as your daughter, then I will not feel so alone when I depart."  
  
Elrond kissed her on her forehead.  
  
"I have had one daughter, and now a have another, and as soon as she is born into my house, she is ready to leave. Yee laiwa horta naa ve maama o i narmos*" Elrond hugged her, tightly. "How many escorts do you need?"  
  
"None." Elrond frowned.  
  
"But you do know where you are going right?"  
  
"Somewhat. please trust me." Elrond nodded.  
  
"You need sleep, I trust that you will see me before you leave?"  
  
"If that is what my L-" Elrond raised an eyebrow. "If that is what you want Atar, then it shall be done."  
  
Elrond nodded and she showed herself out.  
  
****  
  
Alceriniel was clad in a deep red tunic, brown trim traced the trimming. Her long dark hair was pulled back into one long high braid in the back of her head. On her back she carried a small amount of personal items, at her side hung her sword. In her boot she hid her fathers dagger.  
  
Elrond stood watching his daughter standing on the balcony outside his room. How she had gotten there he had no idea, she could move with more stealth than any other Elf that he had ever come across.  
  
She was quiet, watching him watching her. Slowly Elrond walked up and kissed her forehead.  
  
"Uuma quena en'mani lle ume ri'mani lle umaya. Uma ta ar'lava ta quena ten'irste'.*" Elrond whispered into her ear.  
  
Alceriniel shimmered under his hands, and began to shrink. She spread her arms wide to the very ends of the earth, and slowly they sprouted feathers, which grew into full wings. There was a moment while she looked like an angel, all of her clothes, and objects connected to her, had blended into her body, creating something like a second skin. The light of the morning sun shone on her delicate looking shoulders, she looked like a goddess.  
  
But her form shrank and in no time she was nothing more than a small red bird flapping her wings to keep suspended in the air. She staid suspended for a moment, chirped then flew off into the morning sun.  
  
"Yee laiwa horta naa ve maama o i narmos." Elrond whispered into the air, then returned into the walls of his living quarters.  
  
FOOTNOTES  
  
*Father - notice how she calls Elrond Atar which is father in Elvish, yet her true father is called just that, her father? Atar became more of an affectionate term for Alceriniel, having never been close to her actual family she had adopted other people to make up for the ones she didn't have, I.E. Uncle Gandalf.  
  
* Yee laiwa horta naa ve maama o i narmos - Lo I send you out as sheep amidst the wolves.  
  
* Uuma quena en'mani lle ume ri'mani lle umaya. Uma ta ar'lava ta quena ten'irste' - Don't talk about what you have done, or what you are going to do, do it and let it speak for itself. 


	12. Of Rejoining and Animal Masks

Authors Note: This chapter is kinda. slow. But what can I say? Almost every story has at least one slow chapter. ^^;;; forgive me the next one takes place in the mines of Moria suuu, yeah pweese forgive.  
  
Chapter Ten:  
  
Alceriniel was soaring high above the forest, it was still to early for there to be any thermals, but the morning sun felt good on her back. She could find no trace of the fellowship, even from her high and vast view above the land, and though she had been flying for over an hour.  
  
She had been covering a lot of ground, quickly. She had passed over the foothills and had come around to passing through the mountains, now circling them to make sure that she didn't miss them, or get ahead.  
  
She tilted her right wing slightly in that direction, she thought that she had seen smoke.  
  
A long sigh came escaped her beak when she saw them cooking breakfast, which came out more like a long chirp, and slowly began to descend on the company below. Once she was not so high above them she picked her perch.  
  
"AHH!" Frodo yelped as she hoped on to his head.  
  
"Its just a bird Mr. Frodo." Sam said, looking up from the fire from which he was cooking. She hoped down onto his knee for a moment and looked up at him, chirped and flew off.  
  
Merry and Pippin were being taught sword play by Borimor, Frodo had gone back to eating, Grimli and Aragorn were talking about god knows what, and Legolas was on the highest rock keeping a look out. She flapped her wings and landed on his shoulder, and started chirping in his ear. He didn't seem to notice or take mind of her.  
  
She pulled at his hair with her beak but she still got no response, so she bit his ear.  
  
Legolas jumped suddenly when she did that, and she almost lost her balance. That didn't surprise her that much, for an elf, the ears were most sensitive. He looked onto his shoulder and saw the small red bird, he could have sworn she was smiling.  
  
She jumped on his shoulder a few times and flew up on top of his head.  
  
"You're a strange bird, you know that right?" Legolas said with a smile, and held out his hand for her to perch on, which she did. She puffed up and chirped again. He patted her on the head with a long, slender index finger.  
  
"What's that?" Aragorn asked loudly.  
  
"It looks like a cloud."  
  
"Its to fast for a cloud."  
  
Legolas looked up eyes wide.  
  
"Spies from Dunland!" Everyone started to scatter.  
  
"HIDE!!!!" someone yelled.  
  
The small red bird just flapped for a moment in place and took off after the spies.  
  
'Was that bird a spy?' Legolas thought to himself. Then he heard a long, drawn out screech, as thought the very heavens were being split open and all of the gods were screaming.  
  
The red bird had grown into something huge, large talons had taken the place of its small delicate feet, and its beak went from small and cute to a horrendously curved, sharp one. Its eyes flashed in the light of the sun, and it chased after the small spies of Saruman. At one point-that only Legolas's Elven eyes could see-the black birds stopped at the sight of the larger bird, then scattered in all different directions. It cut down several birds with its talons, the rest just fled, then in a silver shimmer, it returned to its normal size.  
  
The fellowship returned from out from under their cover, and the small red bird flew down onto Legolas's shoulder.  
  
The fellowship stood in awe, at the small creature that had turned into such a big monster. That had strayed away the Spies of Saruman, and kept them safe for only a short time.  
  
"It scared them away."  
  
"Is it friend?"  
  
"Is it a spy?"  
  
Different questions came from the members of the fellowship, except from Gandalf and Legolas. The former of which walked forward and picked her up gently from Legolas's shoulder.  
  
Gandalf looked at her from under his bushy eyebrows and smiled. He whispered so softly that even Legolas would probably not have heard, but a bird, with keen sense of hearing, could.  
  
"You just couldn't keep away from him could you?" He patted her on the head and released her, she chirped and landed on the top of his pointy hat.  
  
"Do you know this bird Gandalf?" asked Frodo.  
  
"Alas yes, She is the princess of the skies, a metamorph of birds. Her name is... Akai*" He said after a pause.  
  
"That is a name of a tongue that I do not recognize." Aragorn said at length.  
  
"It is a tongue from the far eastern regions of Middle Earth, I doubt you would know it." Gandalf smiled. "But Alas my friends we should be off, the morning sun has risen and we must be on our way!"  
  
With this the company gathered their belongings together, and headed higher up into the mountains. Where the snow fell like blankets upon more snow, and were much danger awaited them even without Saruman.  
  
  
  
FOOTNOTES  
  
*Akai - is actually Japanese for Red (((_^))  
  
  
  
Authors Note:  
  
Yeah, Sorry to say I might not be able to put up a new chapter each day like I've been doing. (((_^));;;;; suuuuu yeah, bear with me. 


	13. Of Lost Friends and Goblins

Authors Note: (((_^)) Yeah I know the last chapter sucked, (((_^));;;;;;;;; but this one is better I promise! I just have one question, You know how in the movie, after they climb up the mountain, then go down to the Gates of Moria? Then they let the pony go? I don't remember them setting off with as much as a horse, much less having a pony when they went up the mountains. Can somebody check this out for me? (((_^)) (and for those of you that ask, yes, that is how my bangs REALLY look)  
  
Chapter Eleven:  
  
The fellowship was gathered around the door that would (hopefully) soon open to the way to Moria, Alceriniel had noticed that Gandalf had been trying to avoid the mines of Moria if at all possible. She had also remembered reading something about the mines in a old book, but she couldn't quite remember what the story was, something about a large monster, but then again Gandalf wouldn't allow them to go into a place with a big monster. would he?  
  
Gandalf knew it was her, and it was Gandalf who had made sure that they hadn't turned her into a bird cabob and eaten her for breakfast. She had been taking turns from riding on Gandalf's hat and Legolas's bow for the time that they had been waiting for the former to finish all his ramblings in Elvish. Right now she was sitting on Legolas's head, watching Sam let Bill go. He was a cute pony though.  
  
She chirped a few times then landed on Legolas's lap. Who petted her head softly with one long, slender finger. Giving into her animal instincts for a few minutes she allowed herself to idly nip at the buttons on his Jerkin. He smiled but paid her no real mind. So she continued to poke at it until she caught a bit of cloth in her beak and pulled.  
  
'Hey!' she thought with surprise. 'That's my hair sash!' she pecked him in the knee, which made him jump. When he saw her pulling on the sash he gently made her release it.  
  
"Hey, be nice." He picked the cloth up and inspected it for damage, finding none he folded it up and placed it back into his Jerkin. "That's important to me, I have to return it to somebody." She tipped her head to the side and chirped. He smiled and patted her on the head. "You wouldn't understand."  
  
'DAMNIT TELL ME ANYWAY!!!' she screamed in her mind. 'Hey tell the bird, god knows its not going to tell anybody else!' She pouted inwardly  
  
"Hey it worked!" Frodo said with a smile as the doors opened.  
  
Just then a giant tentacle came out of the water and wrapped itself around Frodo. Alceriniel let out a wild squeak of surprise, though Aragorn was the first to react. He ran forward and sliced the tentacle. Legolas was next to react, along with the hobbits, the former of which began to shoot arrows at the thing, the latter running up and slicing the other tentacles, only to be ensnared themselves.  
  
Now a head was emerging from the depths of the water.  
  
"Legolas! Aim for the eyes!" Aragorn yelled, but Legolas was busy trying to free one of the hobbits.  
  
Alceriniel bolted for the things face and rammed her small but sharp claws into the things eye, and began to drag her feet across the soft, vulnerable area, tearing, slashing, slicing. The monster screamed and swiped at its face, and Alceriniel took flight upward out of the range of the tentacles, and headed for the sanctuary of Gandalf's hat, Legolas was already shooting the large octopus like monster's eyes forcing it into retreat, while the rest of the company, fled into the safety of Moria.  
  
Once inside, without having any arrows shot at it, the Octopus proceeded to bring down the doorway, thus trapping them inside successfully.  
  
Alceriniel blinked even with Gandalf's glowing staff, she was near blind in these conditions. She twittered and jumped up and down impatiently.  
  
"Oh botherdash! Just change into something else if you don't like not seeing!" Gandalf exclaimed when she wouldn't stop moving. She cocked her head to the side as if to say,  
  
"I'm open for suggestions jerk."  
  
"Don't give me that look, turn into a cat or something!" Grimli, and Borimor were looking at Gandalf as if he was crazy.  
  
"Gandalf." Borimor began, then stopped when he saw the bird start to shimmer, it flapped to the floor and began to grow, its body lengthened, and its wings turned into arms. The toes of the bird-like feet grew together and rounded off, and the tail feathers began to melt into one long tail. The face fattened and filled, yellow eyes appeared over a feline mouth and whiskers. Fur grew in a thick coat around the animals body, finally the change stopped and a large red tiger stood before them. Its finished product followed by stairs of astonishment, Pippin walked up to her a hand outstretched and began to pat her on the head, she let out a purr to please him and assure the rest of the company that she was still safe to be around.  
  
"Come, we must hurry." Gandalf moved ahead of the group, hastily. The rest began to follow him into the mines of Moria.  
  
***  
  
Another crash of stone falling from were the Cave troll hopefully missed its target sounded through the small Tomb of the Dwarven friend's cousin. More and More Orcs tried to pour through the doorway, but every Orc that came through the doorway, met Alceriniel's deadly teeth, or claws.  
  
She jumped with the grace of a cat that not even an Elf could master, Leaping onto the Orc that foolishly thought it could sneak by her defenses, clamped her teeth below its helmet and threw her weight to the side, a sound snap sounded that her movement was exact, and in less than two seconds another Orc lay dead at the foot of the great door.  
  
'If this keeps up we can just barricade the door with the bodies.' She thought to herself in disgust and leapt for another Orc, this time raking her claws just under the arm of it and ripping its arm off, it crumpled to the ground and didn't move, she left him there to think about his punishment while she dealt with the others.  
  
Behind her she heard the commotion of the men fighting the Cave Troll, she turned her head at the sudden sound of several people shouting 'FRODO!' Only to get stabbed in the thigh by the same Orc that she had left without an arm. She let out a low growl and caught his neck with her claw, this time silencing him before she ran over to see Frodo.  
  
But by this time the young hobbit was already moving.  
  
"I'm fine." He said revealing the Mytril armor. But he still seemed pained at getting up, She nuzzled him under his arm and lent her side towards him, she was a big tiger and even though she had the womb in her thigh, it was not enough to hinder her, at least not until she changed back into a Elf.  
  
Aragorn helped Frodo onto her back and they took off through the gates her paws were hardly touching the ground as she ran with the others, Frodo's small hands holding tuffs of her hair to keep from falling off. But no matter how much she ran she knew that she wouldn't be able to outrun the hundreds of Orcs and Goblins that had surrounded them.  
  
All of the fellowship tensed, ready to fight to the death for a lost cause, Alceriniel however just stood perfectly still, a cold chill was running down her back, but it wasn't the least bit cold about her. The instincts of the Tiger form that she had adapted were starting to kick in. Her ears laid back against her skull, and her lips curled up showing all her teeth, all of her muscles bunched up ready to spring at the first thing that came near her. And continued even after the Goblins had fled.  
  
Frodo patted her neck as she started to growl, a deep menacing sound that would make even the bravest heart wince at the sheer hatred in it.  
  
"Calm down girl." He said, though she could smell the stink of fear radiating off of him. Then a sound toned from deep within the back recesses of the hall, and fires burned from every direction, and at the same time from no were at all. She snapped at the different directions that the light was coming from.  
  
"Run you fools! It's a Balrock!" Gandalf commanded, then everyone ran on command. Thought he immense double doors that led to the bridge. She didn't look back, even when she was ahead of the group, she didn't need directions because the bridge was right in front of her.  
  
But then came the large stairs, She tossed her head like a horse, as a signal for Frodo to get off of her, which he did without question, She didn't think that had enjoyed the ride as much as he would have a horse. The rest of the company caught up and began to descend the steps as quickly as humanly possible until they came to the crack in the path that they were taking. Legolas jumped first, and nimbly, then Gandalf. Followed by Grimli and Borimor with the two hobbits. Alceriniel jumped Next and almost didn't make it because just as she jumped she was hit by an arrow in the shoulder, which Borimor pulled out upon her landing. Aragorn and Frodo made it just almost by a hair when the last part of the stairs started to fall. Once all had crossed they ran as if the devil was at there backs, and just sure enough. It might have well been him.  
  
When they came to the last small bridge Alceriniel was the first to cross, Pippin on her back by this time due to the fact that he almost fell off the steps, Merry ran behind her. Once on the other side Pippin slid off of her back and pressed a cloth to Alceriniel's injured shoulder. She however began to run back to the bridge when she saw that Gandalf wasn't coming.  
  
"You Shall Not Pass!" Gandalf commanded thrusting his staff and sword into the ground, creating a magical barrier that broke the bridge itself and caused the Balrock to fall with it. Gandalf in supposed triumph turned to join the others when the whip of fire wrapped around his ankle and pulled him down, Alceriniel began to run forward, only to be held back by Legolas and Borimor, she struggled but even with the strength of a Tiger the two men were to strong for her. She was forced to watch helplessly as Gandalf tied to pull himself up.  
  
"Valor you fools." And he fell. Alceriniel Roared and pulled some more but finally stopped when she heard Legolas whisper into her ears.  
  
"He's gone, he's gone stop." She held still for a moment and ran out towards the exit, the farewell they got was merely a shower of arrows from the remaining goblins that remained in the once proud providence of Moria.  
  
Authors Note:  
  
(((_^))  
  
hee hee, I thought that I would never get this chapter done in time for the dayly deadline, pray for me kitties. Give me strength! I needs it!  
  
Ohhh look for my other story that I write in computer Apps  
  
*runs from people screaming at me for not spending more time on this fic* Well its not my fault, all the files on this story are at my home computer the other story is at school, but keep an eye out for it anyways k?  
  
Its called  
  
Wolves Fortress  
  
Its about Leggie loo-loo getting mixed up w/ bandits and such. Suuuu yeah I hope you enjoy it, though It probably wont be updated as much as this one though!  
  
(((_^)) heee hee well that's all for now, c-ya 


	14. Of Those that Leave again and Hooded fig...

Chapter Twelve:  
  
  
  
The company gathered outside of the exit, many had tears in there eyes, Alceriniel couldn't cry, her eyes weren't made for that, and even if she could, she probably wouldn't in front of people that she didn't know to well.  
  
She could feel the forests of Lothiorien not to far away, the familiar warmth run down her spine, and made her hair tingle all the way down to the tips, but it did nothing for the pain in her heart.  
  
She looked back on the fellowship behind her, Aragorn was trying to get everyone round up to get them to the forest of Lothiorien. Alceriniel Started to make her way down the hill, but was stopped by a hand on her shoulder.  
  
Legolas.  
  
"Are you leaving?" He asked her softly, stroking her behind the ears, she purred and nuzzled him, then turned to leave, it didn't bother her, she knew that she would see him before the sunset of this day.  
  
***  
  
Legolas watched the Red Tiger descend down the side of the mountain. The wombs on her shoulder and thigh were still bleeding slightly, but it wasn't much of a surprise the wombs weren't made ten minutes ago.  
  
He was sad to watch her go, but he couldn't make her stay. He turned back to see everyone getting ready to leave, with one last look at the Tiger that had taken to running.  
  
***  
  
Alceriniel changed back into her Elven form as soon as she reached the woods. She was found by one of the watch guards up in the tree, who took her to the city. Where she told of the oncoming visitors and her wombs were treated. She didn't leave her room until later that night, but she was clad in a gray cloke that hid her face.  
  
She walked down the long spiral staircase until she came unto one of the smaller forest gardens, and she saw him leaning against a tree.  
  
When she saw him she felt the necklace against her collarbone burn against her skin, as though it was a mother who's heart had warmed upon seeing her son having grown up into such a strong, good man. Of course, the tree would have in fact seen Legolas grow up, and trees held sentimental attachment just like humans.  
  
He looked like a god, his eyes were closed in quiet thought, and his hair fell lightly over his shoulders. He was wearing a pale blue silk shirt and matching leggings. She could only wish that he would open his eyes, she knew that they would look even more striking with the clothes he was wearing.  
  
But what really caught her attention the most was the way the depthless light that shone all around him created something of a halo around him, like a gentle aura.  
  
"Its not polite to stair." He murmured without looking up.  
  
"I was wondering what a prince of Mirkwood would be doing out at such an hour alone, and in such deep thought, but you have lost a member of your party, so I suspect that you are in grief." He looked up at her.  
  
She had been right, the intensity of his eyes against all of his surroundings made her want to weep at his beauty, and the whole time she asked herself why it had to be him that she fell for.  
  
"Though it would be most understandable, it is not grief for which I stand here and contemplate. It is of matters of farther into the past, though the fact that we have lost the council of Gandalf does not help matters at all, and the one we look towards for support seems to take all the guilt upon himself, then he wont talk about it."  
  
"Yet you also pile guilt upon yourself and seek solitude." She said slowly, looking down into the waters from which pale light shone from, she saw her reflection, or at least the simple cloke that she was hiding in.  
  
"This is true, many things plague my mind. But other things also. Things that I fear to discuss because I do not know my own feelings yet."  
  
Alceriniel looked away for a moment and pulled a hand out from her cloke, she held a glass pitcher with a silver handle that wrapped around the neck and continued in something of a net pattern. Legolas looked at the object that she offered, a red liquid filled the bottom.  
  
"To make you sleep easy." She whispered. Legolas took the jug, and his hand brushed hers. For a moment he froze and peered at her with such intensity that she thought he could see her face through the cloke.  
  
"Your voice. reminds me of somebody who I hold very dear." He said slowly, and reached out a hand to pull back her hood. She stepped back, Legolas did not pursue the matter further.  
  
"Sorry." Legolas murmured, "Your voice is so much like somebody else I know, for a moment I thought that you were her." He smiled softly, on a memory then continued. "I am sorry if I startled you."  
  
"No offense is taken, and you should not feel the need to apologize." She whispered softly, barely audible. "I am afraid that I must now take my leave. I feel that my mistress is calling me." She turned and walked away, bare feet making no noise on the moss beneath her feet, and before Legolas could stop her, she was gone.  
  
He stood for a moment in the small wood within the wood, looking after where she left, then his gaze shifted back to the pitcher in his hand.  
  
"Diola lle." He whispered into the night air, and he could almost hear,  
  
'Lle creoso'  
  
**************************************************************************** **************************************************************************** *  
  
FOOTNOTES:  
  
*Diola lle - Thank you  
  
*Lle creso - Your welcome  
  
Authors Note (((_^))  
  
Gee I haven't used any elfish in about three chapters (((_^));;;;; hee hee hee oh well. Sorry that I didn't have this chapter up yesterday, a friend came over to the house, also, I might not get a chapter up this weekend either. *Covers ears and doges sharp objects* SORRY, I am already working on the next chapter though so don't worry.  
  
Oh and another happy thing, I might get my scanner hooked up because we are having a snow day tomorrow! You know what that means?  
  
FANFIC PICTURES!!! YES ITS TRUE! When I should be working at school I draw the characters. Suuu fun, the sad thing is I draw the whole time in Mr. Pelegie's science class and I still know more than the rest of the kids in there! Ha! High school rocks the teachers don't care if your paying attention or not! MWAHAHAHAHA! I'll put a link up on the Preface when I get them up ^___^.  
  
I'm also thinking about doing a online comic, something gothic. hmmmm. Well It's a work in process. Heeee! I need to re-do my web page anyway, its to. messy. ^__^ maybe a LOTR theme? LOL that would be cool huh? Oh well I have rambled enough, I have to work on the next chapter don't I? 


	15. Of False hate and Legends

Authors Note: (((_^))" -(*Twitches ear*)  
  
Hey did you ever notice that the time span from when Merry and Pippin were captured and the battle of helms deep happened in less than three days? That means that it took at least a year of filming to cover three days in the book. Kinda ironic when you think about it isn't it?  
  
  
  
Chapter Thirteen:  
  
  
  
Alceriniel hurried back to her chambers and pulled back her hood. Her face was flushed bright red from the sting of the necklace against her breast. When Legolas touched her it seemed as though the necklace was telling her to reveal herself, to quit playing around.  
  
'I'm not playing.' She thought to herself. 'I don't know if it is safe for Legolas to know whether its me or not.' She turned the key in the door behind her and let out a long hiss of a sigh.  
  
"Somehow I thought that the return home would be a lot more. warm," She whispered to herself. She hadn't seen her mother, she was to busy with the fellowship. She had been greeted by her 'cousin', when she had arrived, he had been the one that she told about the fellowship coming, he had also been the one to go and get them when they entered the forest. As soon as he left to find the fellowship a nurse came in and bandaged her arm and shoulder, both were still throbbing, but she knew that they would be nearly healed in a matter of days.  
  
She reached on the inside of her shirt and pulled at a bandage absently, thinking. Why would the necklace burn her so? She looked down at the diamond that hung down in front of her chest. The leaf that was somehow worked into the diamond sitting there, waiting. For what she didn't know.  
  
There was a knock at the door.  
  
"M'Lady Alceriniel? I bear a message from the Lady Galandriel."  
  
The woman still didn't want to be called queen, why? Did it make her feel old or something?  
  
"Speak messenger, I don't think the door needs to be open sense I can hear you clearly out there."  
  
"Her Ladyship would like to have council with you."  
  
"Am I to give or receive?"  
  
"Receive from the looks upon her face M'Lady."  
  
Alceriniel bit her lower lip, and traced her thumb across it.  
  
"What should I tell her M'Lady?"  
  
"Tell her I shall come to receive her council." Alceriniel said at length. "But tell her that I am pressed for time. I leave at dawn."  
  
"I shall tell her Ladyship at once."  
  
She heard the messenger walk down the hallway. He would probably be back in a matter of minutes to tell her when she was to see her mother.  
  
Alceriniel slid out of her cloke and placed it in her wardrobe. Within a few moments the messenger came back.  
  
"Her Ladyship is ready to see you My Lady."  
  
"Tell her that I come."  
  
Alceriniel stood and slowly walked to the throne room. She wasn't to excited about seeing her mother.  
  
The throne room was beautiful, as always. Glass made of thinly cut diamonds, adorned the windows. Marble covered the floor, silks hung in various tapestries around the room. The Throne itself was made of pearl and other precious stones. Her mother sat on the throne, her face calm, with no real emotion etched in it.  
  
Alceriniel bowed.  
  
"I was shocked to find that you wouldn't be staying with us for long." Galadriel said keeping her strait face. "I have not seen thee in so long, I was wondering if you might have died."  
  
"It surprises me to see that you even though of me whilst I was gone." Alceriniel said stone-faced. "You had made no move that I know of to even check up on me, you just left my life up to fate, as for how long I am staying. It is imperative that I leave as soon as I can for a destination that I shall not reveal."  
  
Galadriel rose quietly and looked down upon the forest of Lothiorien.  
  
"I had no reason to worry, when you left I knew that you could take care of yourself, besides Elrond wouldn't let anything happen to you." She stopped. "I was also concerned when I learned that you accepted Elrond as your new father," Galadriel turned to Alceriniel with a fleeting look of anger. "Tell me, was your real father so hard to forget?"  
  
"I have no real father." Alceriniel said coldly. "I never knew him, the father is the male that raises the child. The one of whom you speak I don't even truly remember, save a few scarce memories. Elrond protected me and kept me safe, he actually took time to get to know me, which my dear mother was more than what you have done."  
  
Galadriel's face went back to its calm serine look.  
  
"Even if I had taken more time to get to know you, it wouldn't have changed a thing. You would still have blamed me for you having no childhood, and you still would have hated me for eventually sending you to Rivendell."  
  
Alceriniel turned her face away from her mother.  
  
"You made the choices for me, you were the one who never let me go outside the city, you were the one who kept me so busy studying and training so that I couldn't have any friends. You where the one who made me into something that was ignorant of the real world. Then you send me to Rivendell where I am suddenly hit by so many new things that I cant see strait anymore. I left Lothiorien ignorant of what you had deprived from me for the majority of my life, and I grew to hate you for it." She looked her strait in the eye. "I leave at dawn, my business is my own."  
  
"Yet you still seem troubled." Galadriel said softly. "A quest is before you, this I have foreseen, a dangerous one. You cant even reveal yourself to the people who you travel with in fear of there safety." She took a step towards her daughter. "I know your quest Alceriniel and let me tell you this. Anyone who you hold dear will be hurt by those who will eventually pursue you. They will be killed, slowly because of you."  
  
Alceriniel glared at her mother and turned to leave.  
  
"Those that are dear to me have been left behind."  
  
"Are they?"  
  
Alceriniel threw open the doors, making spider web like cracks in the marble walls that they hit.  
  
"I know of your feelings for the elf." She froze, she couldn't even breath, all she could do is glare at the same direction that she was intent on going in, but her feet wouldn't move. "You will be the death of him, if you truly care for him, you will leave him behind to. Besides," Galadriel took a step close to her and pulled back her long hair, to whisper in Alceriniel's ear. "He isn't good enough for you anyway, he is just a spoiled, wimpy, elf. Not worthy of a Princess like you."  
  
Alceriniel turned and slapped her mother, hard across the face. Where her nails raked across the soft skin blood trickled from small, but deep cuts.  
  
"Your not even worthy of looking at him." She hissed and left her mother standing there, calmly watching her go.  
  
"I do not see why you had to hurt the young mistress so." The messenger came out from one of the tapestries from which he was hiding behind.  
  
"If there are any that she still holds dear when she faces her destiny it will make it harder for her to go through with it. I just hope that one day she will understand why I did what I did."  
  
"She wont leave the Elf so easily." Said he.  
  
"Though it would probably be the best thing for her if she did, she most likely wont. The love she feels for him is so immense that it could break her, though she doesn't truly recognize the ferocity of it yet."  
  
"Do you believe, that Prince Legolas might be the one who-" She cut him off.  
  
"I can only pray. I just hope that he returns the amount of love that she gives."  
  
ILo, I send you out as sheep amidst the wolves/I  
  
Authors Note: (((_^))  
  
Gee did any of you hate Galadriel for a moment there? Hee hee hee, well I didn't think that I was gonna get this chapter up anytime soon but YAY, we had a snow day! *Does a mad little dance around the room* Yeah, so now we have a four day weekend, but somebody is coming over today, and blah blah blah. you know the drill but hey, we have a plot now! WHOOOOOOT!  
  
Well I got my scanner hooked up, now all I have to do is find the disk for it, so I'm waiting for my brother to take a shower so I can go in his room and look for it LOL heeee suuu pickies still to come kay?  
  
PLEASE REVIEWWWWWW! 


	16. Of Self Banishment and Budding Quests

Chapter Fourteen:  
  
  
  
Alceriniel burst into her bedroom with such ferocity that the servant who was making her bed jumped, and watched speechlessly as the young mistress packed all of her things in such hurry. When finally her wits had been regained, the young servant spoke with such bold of a tongue.  
  
"My young mistress, why with such fury do you make such hast to leave?"  
  
"I am not the young mistress of Lothiorien, and I never shall be again, I drop all relations with this kingdom, and choose to exile myself from this hellish heaven."  
  
"But my Lady, are you not the princess of the Elves? Surely you cannot just pass aside such a position so lightly?"  
  
"I was not made for such a purpose servant and it should do thee well to hold your tongue."  
  
"If you have dropped your position of such a high elf then I have no need to hold my tongue."  
  
Alceriniel drew the dagger from her boot and gripped it tightly in her hand.  
  
"Dear servant do not provoke one who's mind is already full of anger and budding hatred, stay thy tongue, I do not want an innocents blood on my hands with the guilt to fall upon my anger."  
  
"Why should I even speak? Your mind as you have said is swimming with anger, and will cloke your eyes from reason. But in time the haze shall clear and you will see a white morning instead of a red one." The maid took her leave quickly.  
  
'It may be anger in which I act, but such anger is justified, though the betrayal of those that I once held dear.'  
  
Alceriniel stooped and picked up her pack, and headed for the door, stopping once to turn back and whisper into the darkness of the room.  
  
"In our last meeting you choose to break my heart, yet I shall leave thee to yourself, I seek no revenge for the hurt that you have brought upon me, for I can think of no hurt that could pierce your cold heart. Whether one had turned your heart cold, or if it was time, I do not know or care. But in your loneliness I can only hope that your hear may one day be again warmed by reasons unknown." And with these words she left the city of Lothiorien, walking though the quietness of the forest in the direction of Rohan, never would she be seen in the forest again, as it closed itself behind her. The fellowship lay sleeping within the forest, even Frodo who had awoken to see into a watery mirror had fallen back asleep on the moss beneath him.  
  
Once Legolas stirred, sitting up and looking towards the direction of the planes, and thus he stared for a minute or an hour, until the gentle caress of the wind kissed his brow, and slowly made him sleep. He could almost feel warm arms around him.  
  
  
  
Authors note: (((_O))  
  
Gee, this was really short but got the point across I think. It was practically in shakespear. Well my excuse was I was watching TITUS while writing it. Next chapter up at the very latest by Monday evening. Suuuu yeah. don't worry. Hee hee still a LOT more to come with this story. Though this chapter was kinda depressing. 


	17. Of Destinies and Legends

Authors Note (((_^))  
  
Hey I found the perfect song for this story!!!! A Perfect Circle - 3 Libras  
  
If you can download it, its perfect for the story (((_^)) !!!!  
  
Chapter Fifteen:  
  
  
  
Alceriniel made her way across the planes of the outer skirts of Rohan. Pack slung idly over her shoulder, old Elven songs being whistled between her lips. The moonlight shone down unto the planes, illuminating the grass and rocks. Giving them there own inner glow. She walked in Elven form, face hidden by her hood. She didn't bother to change into any animal, for she had no reason to do so.  
  
Earlier on she had happened upon a wild horse, about three leagues back, that now walked beside her calmly. He was a stallion, jet as black as the night, he had told her that his name was Mor Me'urra* and he had called her Uuranor*. It was a not so commonly known fact among humans that a horse chooses its rider, not the rider that chooses its horse. But she called him Mor for short, and he called her Uur.  
  
How much longer till we reach Edoras? Mor asked with a long neigh. Alceriniel looked up at the stars and pointed to a constellation.  
  
"That's Me'urramya Rokko* The god of horses, The capitol of Rohan is directly beneath it."  
  
But how far? Mor asked, stopping and clopping his left front hill against the grass impatiently. He was young, and restless, she could tell he wanted to run.  
  
"About five leagues. If you look strait ahead you can see the hill upon which the castle stands." Mor turned his head to the side to get a better look.  
  
I don't see it, I don't have your Elven sight. he said with a clomp for good measure.  
  
"If you want me to ride you just ask." She said with a slight smile.  
  
We would get there faster. She nodded, and jumped gracefully upon Mor's back. She held on tight to his mane as he was running faster than any horse that she had ever ridden before, she never had the need to get anywhere quickly.  
  
The gates of Edoras drew near, quickly and the five leagues passed almost as quickly as five feet. Alceriniel could see the guards at the gate shuffling around. When Mor got to the entrance, she jumped off the horse just as quickly as she had gotten on, if not faster.  
  
"Ho!" Yelled down one of the Guards. "What business do you have in Edoras?"  
  
"I have traveled far, from the Elven city of Rivendell. I come to Edoras bearing council for your king."  
  
"King Theoden sees no one at this time of night." The guard yelled down. "I suggest that you hold your council until tomorrow."  
  
"Inform your superior then of my coming. Tell him I have ties with Elrond, king of Elves, and there will be much scrutiny if you leave one of his daughters out to fend for herself in the dark Orc infested planes of your kingdom."  
  
She could see the Guard glare down at her from her insult, but he still ran off at her threat to inform his superior.  
  
It probably wasn't a good Idea to insult him Mor said.  
  
"Then they should be more hospitable." She muttered. The guard came back and motioned for them to open the gates. "I cant talk to you once we get inside Mor, so please be quiet." Mor neighed, hurt etched his voice. "You could run off, I'll whistle if you are needed." Mor neighed and turned to run. "Oh! And see if you cant hunt down Shadowflanx, get him to look over the planes for strange travelers, a mixture of races." Mor nodded and ran off.  
  
"Hurry and enter!" the guard yelled down at her, she walked forth into the inner gates of Edoras, and the gates closed behind her.  
  
***  
  
Alceriniel curled up into a tight ball on the bed she now slept in, curled in a fetal position around the her dagger. Ever sense she had entered the castle of Edoras she felt a dark cloud pass over her. She didn't know why she couldn't feel it a long ways back, there were evil forces at work here.  
  
She curled tighter around her knife. She needed to come up with some kind of council to give Theoden, she didn't know any mind magic, so she couldn't make him just let her stay if she wanted to. Her shoulder and thigh felt stiff from there still present wombs, she was also hungry and thirsty. She didn't even have any Lembas in her pack.  
  
At the thought of her pack, she opened it and spilled out its contents. A change of clothes, her journal, a ink pencil, and her Kaita*. A maid had brought her a dress with long sleeves for her to wear. Pale blue. She pushed all of her things back into her pack, and curled back up into a ball on her bed. One hand grasping her dagger, and another curled tightly around Legolas's necklace. She could feel a warm pulse from the stone, and she couldn't help but feel that Legolas was sleeping soundly somewhere out in the vast area of middle earth, and with that thought in her mind, she surrendered to a deep sleep.  
  
***  
  
She woke up in the Giant diamond again. This time Dayanta had somebody with her, He stood quietly and soundlessly beside her. Dayanta took a step towards Alceriniel, and helped her to her feet.  
  
"This is Teliniki, he is a Soothsayer, he will tell you what your next step in this quest of yours is. I have been told to give you this." Dayanta handed her a small ring, a jewel that looked much like a pearl was the only thing that adorned the surface, colors swirled from the base of it, and came to settle in the middle of the stone, where it became a small oval swirl. Teliniki spoke.  
  
"Child born of light, you have completed the first step in your quest. You have traveled to Lothiorien with the Fellowship, and then made your way to Edoras. But here you will not be alone, you will make a friend here, she will be dressed in white. The four that you are meant to be reunited with will be here in a matter of two days. Councils will be given, and choices will be made, a whole city shall move, and you will move with them. There will be a battle, and many will fall, but keep up hope. Secrets will be reveled and Realizations will occur, but through all of this you must survive. The ring you bear is in truth no mere ring, it is the balance to a evil that begins to cloke our lands. Its power is ancient, and the price for it is dear, you must guard it with your life. It is the ring of light, and it is your inheritance, and with this ring comes your destiny to fulfill the prophecy of Holandria. You will be the one who will cover this land with light."  
  
Alceriniel stood looking at the ring for a long moment, then handed it back to Dayanta.  
  
"I accept no destiny. I live for myself and those I hold close."  
  
"That ring is the one thing that can actually save your friends." Dayanta said in unrest, holding the ring out to Alceriniel.  
  
"I need no trinket to save my friends, I need no shortcut. I am my own weapon. I will follow the fellowship, but I will not become a pawn in a legend." Alceriniel said sternly.  
  
"You will find that one day, your will alone will not be enough, you need your heart, and your soul. This ring is connected to you just as is your soul. It has been waiting for you, this is your destiny whether you choose it or not." Dayanta said desperately, then lowered her voice. "But regardless, we cannot make you do anything against your will. The choice is yours alone. But remember, the ring is part of you and it will sense if you are in danger, and if you just ask of its strength it will give it. And now that all has been said, you must wake."  
  
And she did.  
  
  
  
FOOTNOTES  
  
*Mor Me'urra - Black Lightning  
  
*Uuranor - Fiery Sun  
  
*Me'urramya Rokko - Thunder  
  
*Kaita - A form of weapon. Attaches to your arms (or legs) like a gauntlet. When you hit the both of them together, knifes flick out from the sides, basically used by a person who likes close combat or is good at acrobatics.  
  
  
  
(((_^));;;;;  
  
Oi, well that ends book one, the first chapter of book two will be up shortly so don't panic. Don't worry I know you are thinking, Book one? Two? Where did all of that come from????  
  
Well, seeing as this is somewhat of a spin off of the original Lord of the Rings story, the first part of the story would end here (that being book one: The Fellowship of the Ring) and would lead on to book Two. See ne? Also it will be easier to keep up with where I am so please bear with me.  
  
There will be a short thingy called Book Two between here and the next chapter, there will be a bit of a pre-amble there for the next book to, and something of a thank you list for all of those who have read the book thus far.  
  
Well I got to get to work on the next part of the story now don't I? Talk To Ya Later! 


	18. Part Two, Book Two: The Two Towers

Book Two: The Two Towers  
  
Prelude or an Authors Ramble?  
  
Okay, this is where I am ready to start the second part of the three books, we are 1/3 of the way there my friends!  
  
Basically this place is to thank all of you who have been so nice to review and everything. If you hadn't I wouldn't have kept writing this story. Especially those who added me to there Favorites list! I feel so loved Thankie! I also want to give a special thanks to Legolas' Lover, Spunky-Hyper-Girl, and BlackStarDust, who have given me much support. And a special thanks to Anwarünya who's having a stick up her butt and lowering my self esteem got me to finally get up Microsoft Word so that I would have a spell check XDDDD. Um.. so lets kind of get back up to speed for a min here.  
  
Alceriniel met Legolas, Legolas met Alceriniel, sparks flew and Legolas saw Alceriniel in her undies XDDD, But Legolas had to leave with the fellowship, Alceriniel had a dream to follow the Fellowship to Lothiorien, she turned into a bird, and a Tiger. She got in a fight with her mom at Lothiorien and tossed away her past affiliation with her mother. She continued to Rohan, and learned a little bit about her destiny, and that all leads up to now, pretty much.  
  
Gee now think, If I had written the story like that then I wonder if I would have had so many reviews? XDDDD Um. yeah anyways. some other thingies.  
  
If you can download A perfect Circle - 3 Libras it is the perfect song for the story. O..kay.. now I think I should hurry up and start the next chapter right? Okay. yeah. bye now, thanks again to all of those who reviewed, even if your name isn't listed. Also thanks to Jennifer again *me salutes*, and anyone who added this to there website. Again link me if you do! ^__^ and E-mail me anytime!  
  
Much Love, Lilfiredevil66 Katie 


	19. Dawn

Authors Note: (((_^))  
  
Did the whole Book Two scare any of you? Well don't worry its just a Time Marker, to tell you where in the actual story we are. So. yeah. hee hee, (God I do that a lot XDDDDD) oh yeah, after much scrutiny I decided where to start the second third of the book.  
  
  
  
Chapter Sixteen:  
  
  
  
"Legolas!"  
  
The Elf turned his head at the sound and looked over his shoulder at Aragorn. Quickly re-adverting his mind back to the task at hand.  
  
"What do your Elf eyes see ahead?" Gandalf asked from atop his horse.  
  
"I see Edoras in the distance, about ten leagues ahead." Legolas said in his loud clear Elven voice.  
  
"Then ten leagues we will travel before nightfall." Said Gandalf the White, and road ahead upon Shadowflanx, Aragorn close at his tail.  
  
"Master Elf, what seems to be plaguing you so?" Asked Grimli who sat upon the horse behind Legolas. "Ever sense we reached the planes of Rohan you have been acting as though you where possessed by something, looking down at the grass so intently as though you where to pull it up with just the thoughts from your mind."  
  
"Nothing is wrong Master Dwarf." Legolas replied calmly, spurring the horse into a gallop, silencing his friend for the time being.  
  
'I don't know how I know, but. Cath. I can feel you somehow, and. I feel that you are close.'  
  
***  
  
"There are three horses approaching Edoras," Said the guard that came into the throne room, Alceriniel turned her head to the noise from the seat in which she was sitting, and moved her rook into her opponents check. Eowyn, scowled at her defeat in the game and looked up at Alceriniel with a slight smile.  
  
"This is the first time I have smiled in weeks," Eowyn said with a slight grin, "Ever sense the snake Wormtounge has entered the walls of Edoras." Alceriniel looked from under her hood at the black snake sitting near the King, neither said nothing to the guard who was still standing at the doorway. So she spoke.  
  
"Keep them under observation then, Come back when they reach the gates." Wormtounge glared at her, and she sent her aura out from her like a whip, making him flinch. She didn't know that she could do that until the first time that she had met the twisted snake ended up in a the corner. Her aura shot out on its own, throwing the man half way across the floor, and for a moment the darkness around the castle faltered. But she had made no real aggressive action against the thing as of yet at least of note anyway.  
  
Both young women got up and walked through the double doors together, though they had known each other for only a few days, they had become close, because right now they where all each other had to reach out to. Eowyn had lost both her brother, cousin, and uncle in such a short time, and Alceriniel was left with no one, for they where all far away from her now.  
  
"What do your Elven eyes see?" Eowyn asked, as she peered as hard as her human eyes would let her, she could only see dots.  
  
"Three horses, but four riders, one a dwarf, two human, one dressed in gray, another an Elf." She felt a burning against her chest when she saw the Elf. She had felt Legolas draw nearer and nearer ever sense she had arrived at Edoras and with each passing step of his drawing near her heart grew to such extremity that she felt as though her heart would burst inside of her chest.  
  
"What's the matter? Your grinning like an idiot."  
  
"Nothing." Alceriniel pulled her hood over her face.  
  
"Why do you choose to hide yourself so much?" Eowyn asked when she saw her friend clocked once again.  
  
"Some things are better hid from the world for a time." She said softly, watching the figures draw closer. "You should go stay with your uncle for a time, they should be arriving shortly." Eowyn nodded slowly and turned to go back inside, looking confusedly at Alceriniel behind her.  
  
***  
  
She watched the company enter the gates of Edoras, and walk up the steps where they where told to put down there weapons. Once they entered the throne room, She put herself in a corner, as to not draw any attention to herself. She saw the scuffle begin, and watched the company fight.  
  
"I-I told you to take the Wizard's staff!" Wormtounge cried, and attempted to flee, but didn't get far because Grimli Slammed his large axe next to the snake's head. Aragorn was knocking people out without killing them, and Legolas was fighting with the liquid grace that only an Elf could possess.  
  
Alceriniel tripped a guard that attempted to run by her to go to the fight, and stuck her book in the small space between the helmet and the breastplate, hitting a pressure point, rendering her opponent unconscious, then moved slowly out to join the rest of the fight. All the while Gandalf was approaching Theoden, summoning out the evil that had possessed him.  
  
Once this task was complete, the vile serpent Wormtounge, fled from the oncoming wrath of the recovered king, who in turn chased the wretch from the very city. Many went out into the street to watch this amusing spectacle, Alceriniel just watched calmly, while the thing ran. And sent a sound crack of aura to the back of his legs to make him run faster.  
  
Once this was over, the company returned to the throne room, where tales where told. Mostly by Aragorn, Grimli was busy eating and Legolas was standing against a pillar, looking around slowly from under his eyelashes.  
  
Alceriniel approached him quietly and tapped him on his shoulder, to get his attention. He turned slowly and looked at her with calm eyes, almost as if he knew it was her. She motioned for him to follow, which he did.  
  
No one noticed them leaving through the side door, not even Grimli who he had been standing next to until he was already gone, with the strange woman in the faded cloke. The woman with no face.  
  
  
  
(((_^))  
  
I thought that would be a good spot to end the chapter at. Not a very good chapter by my standards but. I felt as though I needed to post, Thank ye all that have reviewed thus far! I am already working on the next chapter! Thankie!!!! (in weird mood 'cause I'm in my computer apps class and haven't had any caffeine (((_*))) 


	20. Daybreak

Chapter Seventeen  
  
Alceriniel led Legolas away from the throne room and out onto the roof of the castle, by now the moon was high overhead. Neither said anything for a long moment.  
  
"Nice view." Legolas said calmly looking across the planes that rolled out from under the city of Edoras.  
  
"Yes." She affirmed, but she wasn't talking about the planes.  
  
Legolas opened his mouth as if to speak then closed it again.  
  
"What?" she asked gently.  
  
"You are the same hooded figure from Lothorien?" Legolas said softly. She nodded and continued. "I thought so. But when we approached, your aura, It reminded me of somebody I hold close." He reached inside of his jerkin and pulled out a red hair sash. "This belongs to her, and I hold it close, just as I hope she holds my gift to her."  
  
Alceriniel bit her lip, it was all she could do not to weep or grasp the necklace that burned against her breast. The look on his face made a tear run down her cheek, he looked as though his love had in fact died.  
  
"You speak of her as though you think her dead." She whispered.  
  
"To die would be a sweet release from the pain that tears at my heart, here I thought that I was going to see her again, only to have my hopes dashed. I know not of whether she is safe or not, or even if she thinks of me still."  
  
Alceriniel reached out and touched his hand gently,  
  
"Trust me when I tell you that you plague her thoughts constantly with a tender touch."  
  
Legolas looked at her quite confusedly. She removed her hand from his and walked back down into the castle, tears rolling down her cheeks.  
  
"Not Yet," she whispered to herself. "Not quite yet."  
  
  
  
Authors Note:  
  
(((_^));;;;; Sorry so short, I am going through all this crap at school right now because I was working on the story and my school work suffered, now I'm working on my school work and the story is suffering. ;;;; anyway, I might not have a new chapter up everyday, but I'll still be trying. PROMISE!!!!! 


	21. Rising Sun

Chapter Eighteen  
  
Gandalf was gone, and the whole of Edoras was moving to Helms Deep. The Slow procession of women, children, men, soldiers, and the sick were all making there way through the pass that would lead them to a hopeful refuge in the mountains.  
  
Alceriniel was atop Mor, who had finally come into stable after Shadowflanx had returned. He was moving between a steady walk and a gallop at his own liking. Alceriniel was busy reading a book, at this rate she would be finished long before this bizarre parade ever got to its destination.  
  
She had put much space between her and the Mirkwood Elf, every time she got close enough to get his sent, or a sight of him, it got harder and harder for her to try and conceal herself, this wasn't a big problem, for he kept moving a good bit.  
  
The twang of a bow caught her attention, she looked up from her book in time to see an Orc that had been riding upon some strange beast tumble down the hill just left of her, many of the people screamed and ran, Mor jumped up on his hind legs surprised.  
  
What was that? Mor asked in his horse like way, settling himself as Alceriniel patted him calmly on his strong shoulder.  
  
"Orc scout," She muttered getting down from the horse, placing her book in her bag that was tied about the horses neck loosely, for he bore not saddle on which to tie the baggage. "They will hurry the people to Helms deep, the solders will protect the flanks of those that flee." She checked her kaita around her wrists.  
  
You act as though you knew that this would happen.  
  
"Saruman would have been able to predict this move even if he was half as wise as he is, whenever there is trouble people flee to a stronghold. The problem is they don't come to merely kill everybody, the come to diminish what few soldiers we have." She began to walk away from Mor.  
  
Where are you going?  
  
"To the battle, you stay with the people and help the weak or the sick." Mor neighed objectively but followed the command, he was smart enough to know that he wouldn't be of much use during the battle.  
  
Alceriniel followed the soldiers up the hill where Aragorn and Legolas stood, the latter of which was sniping Orcs with his bow.  
  
When she got close to him she saw his bow falter and instead of hitting the Orc in the small space between the helmet and the neck, it hit the thing full in the face, but it was still a fatal blow.  
  
She slammed the two of her kaita together making the blades rip through the cloth of her cloak. Alceriniel stood ready as the Orcs charged at those assembled on the field.  
  
When the first wave came over the company a few of the human men lost there heads, literally. The rest sprang into immediate action. Soon enough slicing and chopping sounds filled the air, accompanied by the smell of blood, both Orc and human.  
  
Alceriniel jumped onto one of the large animals, decapitating the rider in the process. The beast bucked her off its back throwing her into the grass, for a moment stars danced before her eyes. Her senses returned quite abruptly when a large growling figure was standing above her, and she was face up watching it.  
  
The beast moved its head close to her slowly, its hot breath pushed back her hood from her face. The next few moments passed by quickly. Her hand flew to her leather boot, grasped the dagger from its inner holster and plunged it deep into the beast's throat, which in turn sprayed blood upon her.  
  
In blind fury, the beast maneuvered its small head and bit deep into Alceriniel's already injured shoulder.  
  
She opened her mouth to let out a cry, but no sound ensued despite the pain that her body was currently feeling. Now the creature lay dead upon her. Without hesitating she slowly pushed up the thing, ignoring the blinding pain that her shoulder was insisting on reminding her of, and wiggled out from underneath the dead beast.  
  
The battle was still raging on about her once she stood up, her kaita where still unsheathed, along with the dagger in her hand. Her Cloak had come off during her wriggling, and was stuck somewhere under the dead beasts carcass.  
  
Given the condition of her shoulder she wouldn't be to good at hand to hand combat without the help of a healer, and even if she shifted into an animal the damage done in her Elven skin would carry to the animal, and possibly worsen the later effects of the initial injury due to the amount of physical stress that would be put on her body by shifting in the first place.  
  
The clatter of junky armor coming up behind her alerted her of a oncoming opponent. She turned just in time to block the oncoming sword with the dagger, which caught the sword's L shaped edge. She clenched her teeth at the pain that ensued from the jarring of her shoulder, and jerked the Orc forward quick enough to slit his throat with the kaita on her presently unused arm.  
  
With that opponent fallen she moved onto the next one that happened across her path, her will to fight came more from annoyance than from anger. Though the battle seemed long it only lasted a few moments. By that time she was covered with blood, both hers and the Beast that had so kindly bit her shoulder, which the remains of her cloak where wrapped around in a makeshift bandage.  
  
She felt grimy, tired, and cold. She took a few shaky steps forward to where a group of men where talking, one finally looked over and cried.  
  
"Gods look-it the Girl!" At the sudden noise she turned around to see who exactly they where talking about, but the motion was a bit much for her at the moment and she began to fall, but a pair of warm strong arms broke her fall.  
  
"Looks like you got in a bit over your head this time Cath." Came a sweet yet masculine voice behind her.  
  
"Shaddup Cooshee" she mumbled drowsily, "I'm fine." She tried to stand shakily, but fell. This time she didn't move.  
  
Authors Note:  
  
(((_^))  
  
Did this chapter make up for the last crappy one? Sorry about that one, Well he finally knows where she is, but is she going to be okay???? Hmmm.. Maybe I should kill her off ya-know? End the story really quick like?  
  
YEEP!  
  
*Ducks bottles and knifes being throne at her*  
  
JOKE!!!! I SWEAR IT WAS A JOKE!!!!!! *rubbles head* Ouchie, who threw the duck shaped rock? Anyway I'm already at work on the next chapter suuu don't worry! 


	22. Morning

Chapter Nineteen  
  
  
  
When Alceriniel next awoke she was atop a horse, but not Mor, this horse was somewhat white. A pair of arms where about her, one holding her against who she was riding with, another gripping the mane of the horse gently. She didn't have to look to see who was behind her, the heat of his closeness, and the strange familiarity of his sent invaded her senses like being hit in the temple by a dwarven hammer.  
  
She was leaning slightly away from Legolas's face, his chin slightly above her right shoulder, her head was leaning more towards her newly bandaged womb. Neither said anything at the moment, so she just let her head stay slightly to the side and watched the hills go by steadily.  
  
The few amount of horse hooves alerted her that the majority of the soldiers had ridden ahead to scout in case of another wave of Orcs. At this moment Alceriniel could care less if one was sitting on her head, all she wanted to do was find a decent healer and get her shoulder fixed as soon as possible, and to get away from the impending conversation that would eventually end up coming from Legolas, which she didn't have the strength to deal with right now.  
  
Finally when she got enough nerve to do so, she stretched out her neck and felt the joints pop and release sweetly. It was a good feeling, and made her neck not hurt as much.  
  
"Felling better?" Legolas asked in his usual calm voice. Nodded slowly.  
  
"I thought Grimli was riding with you?" Alceriniel asked, trying her best to keep her voice as calm as the young elf behind her.  
  
"He is on Aragorns horse." Legolas said, by this time she was looking at him from the corner of her eye, and she saw something flicker behind those calm light blue pools. She didn't pursue the matter.  
  
She began to move forward a little bit to pop her back, but didn't get far when Legolas tightened his grip around her waist, as if trying to keep her from falling.  
  
"I'm not going to run away or anything." She said irritated. At least she had enough strength to still get bitchy. "I was just going to pop my back."  
  
Legolas hesitated for a moment and released his grip on her, so she could stretch articulately, then put his arm back in its locked position around her waist.  
  
"I don't want you to run or hide from me again." He whispered in her ear, in so low a tone that Elven ears might not have been able to hear if they where not up next to his mouth.  
  
"I have no reason to anymore." She said quietly, looking at the expanse of the mountains in the distance. Helms Deep wasn't to far off now, more or less ten to fifteen leagues.  
  
"What I want to know," Legolas began, and she inwardly winced. "Is why you hid? Why didn't you tell me that It was you in Lothiorien? Or at the Castle on the Roof?" The hurt in his voice was evident enough.  
  
"It wasn't safe for you to know, and if I had been given the choice, you wouldn't know it was me now." She muttered looking down at the strong arms that encircled her, and the patient horse moving ever onward without question.  
  
"Why would it not be safe for me to know it was you?" He asked, the calmness returned to his voice.  
  
"I cant tell you that." She whispered gently, looking down at the passing grass. Legolas said nothing. "I'm sorry, please trust me when I say it is for your own protection."  
  
"I don't have much to base trust on you with, seeing as how you had deceived me. Pretending to be a hooded figure-"  
  
"And a bird." She pointed out  
  
"Yes and a. bird." He squinted his eyes confusedly for a minute, "and a tiger?" Alceriniel nodded. He looked down at her for a moment, but didn't pursue the matter further, he had heard of skin shifters before.  
  
"Conditions being?" She prompted gently.  
  
"You must do two things, first you have to tell me your real name." She smiled having forgotten that she had never told him her real name yet.  
  
"Alceriniel." Legolas smiled.  
  
"Beautiful name." He complimented.  
  
"So I am told." She was looking up at him now, searching his features for any small break from his composure. "And?"  
  
Legolas sucked in a breath and looked away for a moment, Alceriniel could have sworn that there was a slight reddening to his cheeks.  
  
"Promise." He began, faltered, and re-started the sentence. "Promise me that. you wont ever leave me." Legolas couldn't meet her gaze, and she almost fell off the horse. "I don't mean like marriage." He blurted out quickly, and she was thrilled to see his calm composure crumble so easily, it was cute really. "I just don't want to be hurt or anything, and well, it's a dangerous journey from here on in, not that it wasn't before, and it would only be natural for me to want to protect you-"  
  
Alceriniel cut him off gently by touching his lips with her index finger, making the Elf blush a deeper crimson.  
  
"I promise." She said with a silly grin crossing her face. Legolas's eyes opened a little with shock of how calmly she could accept such a promise, and scowled a little when she started to giggle.  
  
"Whats so funny?" She put her hands over her mouth as she laughed she was looking at his face. "What???"  
  
"Your. face." She gasped out between laughs. "Looks like.. A giant tomato!" She let out a howl, and he had to catch her before she fell off the horse. He was scowling a bit from his hurt pride but said nothing and continued to steer the horse, just when an arrow flew by there head. And landed in the grass below.  
  
Legolas tensed quickly and looked around for any sign of the one who shot the arrow.  
  
"Legolas its just a message arrow."  
  
"I knew that."  
  
He reached down from the horse and pulled the arrow out of the ground. And read the note.  
  
'We can see you lover boy!' and at the bottom where the signatures 'Ara, and Grim' Legolas scowled even deeper.  
  
"Whats it say?" He waded it up and threw it over his shoulder.  
  
"Nothing."  
  
"No really what??? . . WHAT???"  
  
  
  
(((_^)) Authors note  
  
Well do you think that was a good note on which to end the chapter? Hee hee most don't end funny, if any. I thought it would be a good change of pace.  
  
Well that chapter is finished, whew. Oh god I just remembered I'm about to have to write a REALLY big battle scene soon shootbuckets! Oh wells please review, sorry this AN is so short ;;;;; not much time, I did this before I went to work. EEEEP gtg baiii! I'm LATTTEEEE! 


	23. Noon

Chapter Twenty  
  
  
  
Legolas looked down at the sleeping figure on the bed, she was curled up in a fetal position, ears perked to pick up the slightest sound, and following each one like a cats ear, turning slightly following the direction of whatever sound just happened to come into earshot.  
  
She didn't look like she as sleeping peacefully, her eyebrows where furrowed deeply, eyes slightly open, and her mouth was set as if she was trying to solve some impossible equation in her head. Having taken off her kaita, she instead had a sword within arms length, not that she would need it, the chambers in which she slept where in the deepest recesses of the inner tower of Helms Deep. Her original clothing, that had been covered in blood, was currently being washed, and all that was left for her to wear was a pale tan nightgown with a low front. And the diamond that hung from a silver chain was clearly visible against her chest.  
  
He made a slow move towards where she slept, making her body jerk towards the sound, brow furrowing deeper with the closeness of the sound. She had obviously been trained at a young age to eventually be a fighter.  
  
When he got as far as the bed she stilled suddenly, and her eyebrows lifted and her face had a more relaxed expression. He began to sit down slowly on the bed, and her half asleep form moved closer to him, until her head was in his lap.  
  
Legolas was surprised at Alceriniel's sleeping reaction to move closer to him, his hand hovered over her head for a moment before finally stroking her soft dark hair, carefully avoiding her ears as he did so, ears where an Elves most vulnerable spot.  
  
He sat there stroking her hair while she finished waking up, her eye lids rising the rest of the way to reveal her aquamarine eyes that seemed to stare off into space for a moment, registering what exactly was going on. Once she did she sat up and stretched, her arm giving her only a little trouble now that it had been treated by proper healers.  
  
Legolas watched her run her fingers through her hair and yawn with a slight smile despite himself, Then she gave him a funny look.  
  
"Cooshee what are you doing in my chambers?" She asked with a slight grin.  
  
"I wanted to ask you about something." He replied calmly. She raised an eyebrow which indicated that she wanted him to continue. "Well. I want to know more about yourself."  
  
Alceriniel looked off into space for a moment, and shrugged.  
  
"There isn't much to tell, I lived in Lothiorien with my 'mother' for a little over three thousand years, then for the past three hundred or so I was living in Rivindell with Atar, Elrond."  
  
"Who was your mother? Do you not like her or something?" he couldn't help but notice the face and way she spoke the word.  
  
"Galadriel." She said with much distaste. Legolas looked at her with shock, she was Galadriel's daughter?  
  
"Why do you hate her so?" He asked, but when he saw how her once warm eyes seemed as though turned to ice he had wished he hadn't.  
  
"I'm not good with people." She said softly. Legolas raised an eyebrow.  
  
"Sure you are, I saw you with those kids down by the river the day I came to Rivendell, you seemed to be getting along good with them then." She shook her head.  
  
"I don't know anything about people, I was never close with anybody, or had any social contact with people until after I left Lothiorien, save my teachers. I was never aloud to talk to anybody else, and I never even met my mother until I was six hundred years old. I spent all my time by myself, and even after I went to Rivendell, I didn't make friends with anybody my own age, they where either younger than me or way older. So, because of her, I grew up without any friends or family, without anybody." She looked up at him with her big aquamarine eyes. "Do you know what that's like? To not have anybody around to talk to, not even being sure that anybody cares that your alive?" She gripped the sheets tightly. "For all I knew I had just dropped out of the sky, I mean if I ever asked about my parents nobody ever told me anything." Her words trailed off and a silence fell over the room.  
  
Legolas looked at her for a moment, trying to grasp what that must have been like. But that was like trying to stop a river with your bare hands, he had always been surrounded by his family, and when his mother was killed he had his friends to turn to for support as well as his family. He had never had to reach farther than his own room for companionship, he had brothers and sisters living on the same hallway as he did in the Mirkwood castle. But even then, after she was actually aloud social contact, she had never made friends with anybody her own age, and if her story held true up to date, he was the first person her own age limit that she had been close to.  
  
Suddenly the reason she always reacted strangely to whatever closeness that he aimed towards her when they first met made her so scared, and still did to a degree, she had also not made any move to talk to any of the hobbits, or Aragorn, or Grimli. In fact in the entire time that he had known her, she had only spoken to three people voluntarily.  
  
A tear rolled down one of her pale cheeks and landed on the silk sheets, breaking into smaller tears that where soaked up by the fine cloth. Legolas lifted her chin with a single finger, she put up no resistance to his touch though another tear rolled down from her lashes, this time stopped by his lips.  
  
Legolas tasted the salty sweetness of her tear, and pulled his face away from hers. Her eyes where wide and unseeing, confusion etched deep within. He rested one hand on her shoulder, the other on the side of her face half cupping it with such gentleness that she wanted to weep.  
  
"I want to make it so that you will never have to cry again." He whispered gently, and trailed his thumb softly over her lower lip, just like she would do when she was in deep thought.  
  
She looked up at him, eyes searching through his soul.  
  
"I know." She whispered gently his face now so close to his that she was speaking to his lips. "I've always known."  
  
There lips touched lightly, like butterfly wings, then he pressed his against hers gently, slightly opening his mouth over hers, her eyes where closed, but she had never kissed anyone before, and didn't know what to do. She opened her mouth a small bit and moved her lips against his, his mouth covered her lower lip, then he moved back slightly, so that there lips where now apart.  
  
Alceriniel slowly opened her eyes, she had read many books that had described a couples kiss, and she had some vague idea of what to expect, but she had no idea that it would be so. there where no words or thoughts to describe the sensation, other than burning without pain. Everywhere his lips touched, her skin had become liquid fire.  
  
She looked at him, so many thoughts where running through her head that she couldn't think, and she was running through so many emotions that she thought she was on the verge of a breakdown.  
  
She was happy, scared, upset, ecstatic, embarrassed. She squeezed her eyes shut tight, and tried to concentrate on one thing at a time, failing miserably.  
  
Legolas watched her sit there with her eyes closed rocking back and forth slightly. He couldn't do anything for her, because he knew whatever was happening was happening in a place where he couldn't reach her.  
  
Finally her eyes opened slowly and she looked at him, eyes scared, looking like she was about to run, she began to shake and Legolas wrapped his arm around her and held her close to him.  
  
"I-I'm sorry." She muttered over and over again, he rocked her back and forth.  
  
"You didn't do anything wrong." Legolas whispered in her ear and held her tighter, muttering words to her in there own native tongue, until she had calmed down enough to sit up on her own.  
  
She leaned back against the bedpost and rested her head against the wall, one hand on her forehead, eyes closed again.  
  
"Sorry, I'm not used to these things." She said irritated. "I shouldn't have acted like that." Legolas laid down beside her and took a long hard look at her.  
  
"I love you, Alceriniel." He said. She jumped at the words and looked strait at him, a smile crossing her face.  
  
"You're the first person I can remember ever saying that to me," She said, eyes still filled with tears. She sat still for a moment, then lunged at him throwing her arms around his neck and held him so close that there wasn't an inch between them.  
  
"I love you to." She whispered into his ear, "I love you to."  
  
  
  
Authors Note:  
  
(((_^)) Awww ant it sweet? More to come, what you didn't think I would end it here did you? With Helms deep coming up? Or do you think I should end it here? I mean, what about all the mystery concerning Alceriniel's father, and that ring that was offered to her? Should I just stop here and leave so much unexplained?  
  
Hmmmm... tell me what you think, I'll be writing the next chapter, I wont post it if you don't want me to. 


	24. Sunset

Chapter Twenty-One  
  
  
  
She breathed slowly, shallowly, her chest barely rising and falling. It surprised him that she was getting enough air to power her body. Her cheek rested against his chest, ear against his heart, the sound of its rhythm had been what she had fallen asleep to, that and his intoxicating sent, that she still breathed in.  
  
Legolas held Acleriniel in his arms, his chin resting slightly above the crown of her head. He had been watching her sleep for a few hours now, arms wrapped around her as tightly as he could without giving her the least bit harm. He lifted up one hand and started to stroke her hair softly, she mumbled something and snuggled closer to him, making her low cut dress come down a little further in the front, revealing the necklace that hung from a thin silver chain about her neck.  
  
At last she stirred, and blinked her eyes to regain focus of her surroundings. Then she looked up at him, smiling.  
  
"Morning." She said with a smile, then snuggled up closer to him. He patted her head. And looked at her for a long moment until she blushed. "Didn't your parents ever tell you its rude to stair?" she said with an impish grin before sitting up and stretching.  
  
"I have no manners, I'm a crude little elf."  
  
"Your to under civilized to be an elf, you're a dog Cooshee." She said, turning her nose up at him, but her eyes still looked at him twinkling.  
  
"If I'm a dog, then you're a Cat, seeing as how your so stuck up."  
  
"Well Master Elf, I suppose that if I'm so stuck up, you may now leave my chambers." She pointed to the door.  
  
"Fine." Legolas stood and pretended to walk away, but turned and jumped on top of her and started to tickle her until she begged him to stop. She finally got up.  
  
There was a bang on the door.  
  
"Alcie!! Open the door, its Urgent!" Her and Legolas exchanged looks and the latter dived behind the bed while the former answered the door.  
  
"Eowyn?" She asked when she pulled open the door, "What's-?"  
  
"Hurry to the outer walls," Eowyn said quickly "A shadow is growing in Rohan, stronger and more foreboding than before." With that the young woman ran off to inform the next person. Alceriniel closed the door behind the retreating figure.  
  
"Its safe." She said slowly, Legolas stood and dusted himself off. Though they weren't ashamed of loving one another it was still bad form to be in a young woman's bedroom at so early a time in the morning. "You might want to hurry to your chambers, they would be sending somebody to come and find you to."  
  
Legolas nodded and started to exit through the window, but Alceriniel stopped him by gently placing a hand on his shoulder, he turned his head to look at her, but didn't get to far into the process before she pressed her lips against his tightly, turning his lips to something akin to fire. Legolas almost fell out of the window at her sudden approach.  
  
When she pulled away she was smiling.  
  
"Go on I have to get dressed."  
  
Legolas gave her a 'Do I really have to go' look. She laughed and shooed him out of the room, and watched him swing down into the window just below hers, where his room was so perfectly positioned, after staring down at his window for a mew moments she drew her head back in and proceeded to get dressed.  
  
*****************  
  
Thedoen stood before the assembled company and looked at them quite blankly he said only three words.  
  
"Orcs are coming."  
  
"How many?" asked Aragorn  
  
"10 Thousand strong, they will be here by nightfall."  
  
"How did we not see this sooner? Such a large army would have been easy to spot." Said the Dwarf.  
  
"No one who would have spotted them would have lived."  
  
"Then how do we know about them, if none who had seen them would have survived?"  
  
"A scout returned bearing a message for the king of Rohan."  
  
"Who was it that captured him?"  
  
"He cannot say, for when the found him, they severed his tounge, and made him watch them eat it, before they put out his eyes."  
  
Alceriniel covered her mouth with one hand as she tried to imagine what his face would look like now, or what kind of pain the man must have gone through by the hands of the enemy. She looked over at Legolas who seemed to be thinking the same thing.  
  
"Hurry and prepare, at night we fight."  
  
  
  
Authors Note (((_^));;;;  
  
Sorry it took me so long to get up the chapter, I've been busy lately. *Legolas chibbi-plushy dolly pops up* Chibbi: Yeah busy making meeee! Lilfiredevil: *Hides chibbi* Hee hee I don't think this is what any of my teachers meant by practicing my artistic skills ^_^;;;;; Er. yeah. Sorry I haven't been replying to my e-mails as much as I should, I DO read them, I just don't have much time to do everything, suuu here are some more thank yous and e-mail stuffs  
  
Spunky-Hyper-Girl: ^__^ hee hee, my fave. Football team? As much as I like football, I can't really pick a team. Chubby Lego: Yeah, she cheats, she cheers for whoever is winning! Lilfiredevil: *stuffs chibbi Lego in her backpack *Quiet you! I'm glad that you are also hosting my fanfic on your site, Sorry about not picking a picture yet ;;;; as soon as I upload one onto the web I'll send you a linky kay? Oh Yeah, here is a linky to her site! http://groups.msn.com/InspirationofMyDailyLife  
  
Lauren Black:  
  
Thank you for the link to the site with the Elfish language dictionary. It was really helpful. (((_^))  
  
Also here is a link to the site that she sent for those of you who want to download a dictionary for themselves  
  
http://www.grey-company.org/  
  
Everybody Else:  
  
Thank you suuuuu much for reviewing for this story. And I'm sorry its taking soo long for me to write it, as it is there is still a good bit more to come, so PLEASE bear with me ^^;;;;;. Thank you for all of the E-mails and support!!!! Please continue to review. or I might kill off all of the characters! MWAHAHAHAHAHAHA  
  
~Ano just kidding, hey wait, stop, put that down it was just a joke ahhhhhhhhhh!  
  
Jan-Ne for now! 


	25. Twilight

Chapter Twenty Two  
  
  
  
Alceriniel narrowed her eyes to shield them from the downpour that had started naught ten minutes ago. To both her sides stood Elven archers, gathered forces from many different planes and woods across middle earth.  
  
Generals had been stationed along the outer wall Legolas, Gimli, Aragorn, and herself where also directed to give orders if needed. They where all scattered throughout the wall, being the few that could speak Elvish.  
  
The company watched the Orcs draw near from there place upon the wall. They held bat there sides ready for the order to fire.  
  
For a moment everything held completely still, Orcs had assumed there positions, and the humans, and elves looked down from the wall.  
  
"Ready Arms!" Alceriniel spoke calmly, clearly in Elven tongue, she could here Aragorn's voice not far off commanding, reassuring. He truly was the heir to Gondor. Out of the corner of her eye, Legolas and Gimli stood waiting.  
  
Then the hellish noise began.  
  
The Orcs beneath the wall started slamming there weapons, shields, feet, anything they could against the moist but still hard ground.  
  
Alceriniel winced at the noise, and at the air that stank of fear and bitter hatred from behind, and rot and death from before her. She slowly pulled an arrow from her quiver and took aim.  
  
"The armor is weak at the neck and the leg, if any get over the wall they are to be killed on sight, when the battle begins you may fire at will."  
  
The elves said nothing, simply standing there, waiting for the signal to fire at the target they had already selected.  
  
Her ears pricked at the sound of a bow string releasing from there wall, and was buried deep in an Orc's neck, he fell to the ground with a sickening thud that even the deaf could hear.  
  
A quiet calm passed over the place much more horrifying than the horrible chorus of destruction that the Orcs had commended to them earlier.  
  
This soundless hell was son broken by a cry from deep within the night, for years and centuries to come it would be debated about which side the cry had come from. Because at that moment a hail of arrows fell from the sky.  
  
And the battle of Helms Deep began.  
  
  
  
Authors Note (((_^))  
  
  
  
Yeah short but relevant to the story. Next chapter might take two days to write 'cause it might be kinda long 


	26. Midnight

Chapter 23  
  
  
  
The rain stung her skin like knives, assaulting her in all directions. She had yet to draw the blades upon her wrists, in there place she had unsheathed a sword that she had salvaged from the stores of Helms Deep. It was a good blade, but now notched from the tough skin of Orcs and bone, she was reduced to merely hacking away with it.  
  
But another Orc fell from the blade, a blow to the neck, even if the entire head isn't cut off could still be very fatal.  
  
"Push down the ladder!" she demanded, before she had the words out of her mouth a group of humans and elves where on the assigned task, the ladder fell with a crash, killing both those on, and under the ladder.  
  
A lull in the fighting ensued. Forces beneath the wall drew back slightly. Alceriniel took this time to resharpen her blade as quickly as she could before the fight warmed up again. Aragorn came up on her left looking down at the Orcs below him.  
  
She handed him the whet stone.  
  
"The lull doesn't bode well does it?" She asked calmly. "They are probably going to breach the main gate." Aragorn nodded.  
  
"There is already a group of Soldiers barricading it, but I smell something more foul afoot."  
  
She looked out into the velvet darkness, eyes taking in as much light as they could. A light was drawing forth, though she could not see what carried it.  
  
Aragorn followed her eyes to the speck of light that was making its way closer to them.  
  
"It's a torch." She stated, watching the object draw closer to the wall, at the direction that the figure was running he would reach the wall a few feet away from where they stood.  
  
Aragorn suddenly started shouting to Legolas to shoot down the figure and she could see why. A group of Orcs and Mountain People where running out of the passage to the sewer beneath them. Which was the direction in which the Orc was running. If not for the light of the lighting she would not have seen the black powder that they where covered in.  
  
Legolas took careful aim with his bow and fired. The arrow struck the Orc in the chest but the beast kept moving. By this time he had run into the tunnel beneath them.  
  
In less than a second the world collapsed beneath them, then pushed up so quickly one didn't have time to prepare for the explosion.  
  
Alceriniel was currently riding upwards on a chunk of rock, it took her a moment to realize exactly what was going on, but by that time she was already on her way back down.  
  
She jumped off the bolder and made a dive for the ground, landing a bit less graceful than she had hoped, she hit the ground and rolled a few feet before friction got a hold of her and she stopped. Alceriniel just laid there for a few moments before she was pulled up roughly.  
  
The Orc breathed its hot breath onto her face, its long jagged edged sword held high above its head ready to strike her down.  
  
Alceriniel didn't have time to think, she let out a small cry and a pulse of red light blew from her in all directions, for a moment everything was still a second that seemed like an age, nothing moved. She saw everything, the Orc in front of her, the battle around her the arrows that where stopped in the air, and before her was a red light, that a small white light shone in the middle of.  
  
"Take It" She heard within her head. "Its your, you'll die without it, you cant shift fast enough to save yourself." By now she wasn't even listening to the voice, her hand slowly reached out and grasped the light firmly in her hand.  
  
Then the light was gone and the world rushed up to meet her.  
  
Alceriniel squeezed her eyes shut quickly and readied herself for a blow that never came, instead she was engulfed in flames, and the Orc that had thought would be able to destroy her, lay in two peaces on the ground. It was about that time that she realized she was gripping a sword in her hand.  
  
The sword was made of pure light, licking out at the ends like a flame. It had no visible hilt, just a large collected light that she held in one hand and the power that radiated from the sword filled her, her sight became clearer sharper, as did her hearing. She suddenly felt the urge to shift, to change into a magnificent creature, and to kill, kill those made of darkness, to kill them in cold blood for a feeling of undying hatred leaked out from them.  
  
The last bit scared her, though she was fighting the Orcs, and though she did feel that what they where doing was wrong, she did not specifically hate them, they had no control over what they where doing. They where bread for this purpose, they knew nothing else but a hatred of both human and elves.  
  
But another flash emitted from the sword.  
  
Her sight was suddenly peaked, she could see the little lines of magic running through the ground and air, lay lines, that could be tapped to obtain the power needed for spells. These lines surrounded the flames that blazed around her, she tapped one of these lines with her mind, sending a fiery concussion away from where she stood, creating a explosion that devoured the Orcs that stood around her in a flaming hell.  
  
Legolas looked over his shoulder to see where the explosion came from, but all he saw was a large pit, and at least ten charred dead Orcs laying within the blast radius, and a figure standing in the middle of it all, clutching a long glowing sword. His mouth almost dropped open when he saw it was Alceriniel standing there, a shout diverted his attention.  
  
"Retreat! Retreat to the inner walls!" Legolas shot off a few more arrows before sliding down the heap of rubble to meet Alceriniel who was looking rather pale, she didn't seem to have heard the order to move back.  
  
"Cath, come on!" He grabbed her hand and started to run, but had to stop when she just about fell over. When she regained her senses she followed him, but not with much elven grace. Once they got within the inner walls she slouched against the wall.  
  
"I.. I think I'm gonna hurl." She groaned and put her hand over her mouth, but held herself back from throwing up. Legolas watched her for a moment before asking,  
  
"What was that thing?" She looked up at him confused.  
  
"What thing?"  
  
"That sword, and that explosion." She looked strait ahead without saying anything, she stroked her lower lip like she always did when she was in deep thought.  
  
"The sword I'm not sure about, but I'm pretty sure that it has something to do with this," She held up her hand to reveal a ring with a pearl like stone adoring it. "And the explosion was magic, I know I did that."  
  
Legolas waited for her to continue, but a large bashing sound from the door signaled that this wasn't the time for questions. She stood up rather wobbly.  
  
"Don't worry about me," She turned back to the door "How long do you think it will hold?"  
  
"Not long," He looked out the window. "The sun will rise in less than a hour." He said quietly.  
  
"Lets hope that we live to see it." She muttered.  
  
"With the sunlight comes hope."  
  
"Maybe it's the destiny of humans to be whipped away from the earth, nothing lasts forever after all."  
  
"Destiny is made by the workings of people, and fate is determined by the choices we make." He said gently, laying a hand on her shoulder. "And hope is what powers the heart to work and make choices." She looked up at him with a smile.  
  
"Grim thoughts are evil ones. But I swear that I've heard those words before." He tapped her on the nose.  
  
"You should have, they where written in the prophecies of Maridore. He is the one who said that there would be a child born of perfect light who would bring unto middle earth 10000 years of light and peace, and watch over her until the next rebirth."  
  
Alceriniel nodded.  
  
"I remember that book." She said softly, "That kind of responsibility shouldn't even be placed upon a god. Besides Maridore was a drunk anyway, I wouldn't be surprised if half the visions that he had where just him talking to himself." Legolas laughed.  
  
"But he was sober when he was crowned the head of the Helean Church." She pffted and looked in the other direction.  
  
"I've never been a real big fan of religion, elves really don't have much of a need for it."  
  
"But you do believe in the gods right?"  
  
"Of course I do, but that doesn't mean that I'm a fan of worshiping a deity. I thought most elves where like that."  
  
"Rest assured that they are." A loud crack came from the direction of the entranceway. "Sounds like they are getting impatient."  
  
Alceriniel just looked blankly in the direction of the door, she didn't feel like continuing the conversation on religion, by now there where several holes in the door, and what was left of the elves and humans where shooting Orcs through them.  
  
"Do you think you can manage another blast?" Legolas asked hopefully. She shook her head.  
  
"I don't have much Mana left."  
  
"What's a Mana?"  
  
"Mana is the amount of energy one has with which to cast magic." She looked at Legolas's blank expression before continuing. "Mana is in everything, humans, elves, trees, water, air. Everything is born with the stuff that makes magic possible, and then there are lay lines, which connect all living things together spiritually, when you use magic you tap the lay lines in order to cast a spell, once more you use your own Mana to control it. Lay lines can also be tapped and stored in a object, that's how we get magical items, like rings. They usually come from a substance that can hold a lot of Mana, like gold for example."  
  
"But you said that people use Mana to control magic, why would you store lay lines to make Mana?"  
  
"Mana is basically life energy, and Lay lines are the energy of the planet. When you die your life energy returns to the planet. When a lay line is stored in a object it becomes Mana, supposedly giving life to the object, When you do this the object can use massive amounts of Mana without worrying about restoring itself because its an object, it cant die. If a living thing uses to much Mana it will die, or greatly shorten ones life. That's why wizards use staffs, they are born with excess Mana, but they channel it into there staffs, and there staffs also gather energy from the lay lines."  
  
"If lay lines can be used to give life energy to an object," Legolas asked slowly. "What keeps a living thing from bringing something back to life or giving more power to oneself?"  
  
"Mostly because a lay line holds to much energy for one person to take, and once a person is dead, they have not the least bit of life energy left to accept more, that's why a ring can take in energy, because it was never technically dead. But if you overload something it will basically explode. The main point is that no living creature possesses the strength to take on pure energy from a lay line."  
  
"What about a god?" Legolas asked, and to this Alceriniel said nothing, because the doors burst open, and the battle began again.  
  
  
  
Authors Note: (((_^))  
  
Holy Hell I'm sorry it took so long to get up! GOMEN NASAIIIIII! Please forgive.. I've been sick.. and school work @__@!!!! I found out that I'm not doing to good in math right now ;;;;; Gach!!! But at least I have an A in science, due to the fact that I had to stop working on the story for awhile.. Again SORRY. 


	27. Book 3: Return of the King

Book Three: The Return of the King  
  
  
  
  
  
Yeah.. um. sorry for the big lag in getting up chapters lately. writers block, and getting suspended from the computer. so the only time that I get to put up anything is at school (computer apps) and at work.. so it might pose a problem. change that. it IS posing a problem. Also I am finding a joy in studying about the Kingdoms in science, you know we are learning about Scientific Classification: Kingdom, Phylum, Class, Order, Family, Genus, Species, and then there are the five Kingdoms: Animal, Plants, Fungi, Moner-somthing, and Protozoa.  
  
But I am trying to work on the story, and I know its taking me a LONG time to update -.-;;;;;; Yeah.. again sorry okie? I am working HARD.  
  
Also, from this point on in the story, we aren't really going by the LOTR story line anymore, meaning the following.  
  
Please don't review the story saying THAT DIDN'T HAPPEN!!!! From this point on the story is spinning off of the track of the original story, sure SOME things that happened in the original story MAY take place in this one, but it will not be time proportional with the book/movie ect. Kay? Well that done with on with the story  
  
MWAHAHAHAHA!!!! Cheated the system wanna see a in the process pic of Alceriniel? Check out my DEADJOURNAL! [pic] 


	28. Birth

Chapter Twenty- -----  
  
  
  
B  
  
breathtakingly Beautiful, the caverns continued on and on for endless miles through the underground hold beneath the fortress of Helms Deep. Stones glittered from the inside of the walls, and long columns had been cut out from the stone, large stone ice sickles hung from the ceiling occasionally dropping a droplet of water on the cavern below, a small stream ran through the passageway, leading on through the tunnel that would eventually lead to the mountains behind the fortress. Its was easy to see that Dwarves had once lived here, and most likely will again, if Gimli had any say in it, he had earlier on set out to look around the magnificent underground castle, Aragorn had followed him.  
  
Alceriniel however sat on a bolder nearest the stream, looking down at the slow moving waters before dipping her hand into its crystal clear wetness and washing herself off, until one threw a towel at her.  
  
"I swear, no matter what you do you always find a way to get dirty." She glared at the blond elf that had taken a perch upon one of the higher rocks.  
  
"Some of us have to fight close to our opponents, and when you hit an artery the blood tends to spurt everywhere, in case you haven't noticed." She wiped the water off her face with the rough towel before throwing it at the smirking elf. She glared at him affectionately before returning her gaze to the clear waters below.  
  
"Something wrong?" Legolas asked, jumping down beside her perch.  
  
"Nothing is wrong, that's what's bothering me." She turned her head to look back over her shoulder at the entranceway, where people where still leaving the caves, some lingering, waiting for there families to come back to get them. Legolas followed her gaze.  
  
"Sad." he said softly, though his face really didn't show emotion, elves where good at hiding them, some had done it for so long that they didn't have them anymore.  
  
"Some of them will be waiting for a long time, they are already trying to identify the bodies of those who had fallen." her voice trailed off, and the two sat there in awkward silence for a few moments. "I feel nothing for them." She finally said, Legolas looked at her.  
  
"Oh?" was his quiet reply.  
  
"I don't feel anything for them, just like I feel nothing for the Orcs, I had no hate for them, and I had no love for the humans, I had no qualms that they died, or for the elves, just. pity. Such a meaningless waist of life, of both Orc, human, and elf." She stood and looked back over her shoulder again. "I have some reading to do." she said softly.  
  
Legolas raised an eyebrow, and stood also.  
  
"No, Choosee I think I need to have some time to myself to think. You will be the first person that I'll see once I come out of the library." She leaned forward and kissed him softly on his forehead, making herself blush in the process. Legolas Nodded and she took her leave.  
  
The young elf laid down in the rock and rested his eyes, far off he could hear the sounds of birds greeting the sun that had risen not two hours before, that had brought the riders of Rohan to Helms Deep's rescue.  
  
*****  
  
Alceriniel shifted through the many loose leaf papers that filled the library, holding up the lantern that lit the darkest corner of the room. She pulled out a stack of papers and brought them back to the desk that she had been occupying for the past few days, a quite extensive stack of papers had been piled up on the left side of the table, along with several books and scrolls of yellowed parchment that looked like it hadn't seen the light of the sun in over a millennia. She casually reached over and took a sip of her Sweetwater while shifting through this new stack, skimming though pages quickly.  
  
The second age. the one ring. evil guy. war. hand cut off.. stuff happened. human kept ring. got killed. Gollum found it. stuff happened. lost ring. midget hobbit found ring. stuff happened. *note: remember to send a thank you card to Gandalf for the fruit basket while I was sick.*. stuff happened.  
  
She blinked and placed the small bound set of parchment to the side and pulling out another.  
  
The Visions of ___________  
  
She leaned back in the chair with relief, this was what she was looking for.  
  
Thrice I have slept in a row, each time I bore the same dream, This prophecy has been submitted before the high council and may or may not be added to the records of the books, I however know what its contents mean and will have the priests teach them with or without the councils permission, so now I set down my last vision while I participate as one in the clergy.  
  
Through the troubled times I have seen a small light in the distant horizon, from this light I saw an angel, clad in red. Her long hair streamed over her shoulders and seemed to float around her in some kind of enchanting spell, while her eyes shone with love and burned like fire, they where light eyes they where, and they reminded me much of the deep sea in the summer. Swimming in green and blue.  
  
At first this vision scared me, I had never seen this beautiful creature in any of my earlier visions before, she spoke unto me with such gentleness that I wished to weep, but the warmth that radiated from her kept me in a state of calm. She said unto me:  
  
'I bear thee no harm, In fact I bear thee good will, and a chance for a future of light. Though you may not live to see it.'  
  
She reached out her hand and a soft glow appeared from within her palm, and suddenly we were standing upon a great wasteland, bodies lay twisted and mangled in different directions, blood had tinted the color of the ground a sick red, however, in the distance the troops of both races had gathered around a large bright light, the light grew bigger and bigger until it erupted, then the bodies healed themselves, stood up, and started walking towards the light.  
  
When I realized that I was also traveling to the light I saw the armies that where crowded around it, Elves, Orcs, and Humans. They all stood quietly watching. Not one harming another  
  
Finally I reached the light, and I was able to see within, the same young girl who had sent me the vision was standing within the light, holding a long glowing sword that seemed to be formed by pure light. She was suspended in mid air, holding the sword with two hands, a look of strain upon her face though her opponent was already laying on the ground in a pile of ash. In less than a few seconds she was engulfed in the light of the sword, which formed a large golden ball around her.  
  
The world shook beneath the ball, rocks and earth began to float and orbit the sphere forming two crossing rings. Then there was a bright light, and the vision faded back to the woman, who spoke again.  
  
'In a time of war not long to come, much like the one that we have faced recently, a child will be born of light, true origin is a mystery even to the gods themselves, for they are not wanted to meddle in these plans. They are of something even greater.  
  
My eyes widened in amazement, she smiled and something of a chuckle came from her.  
  
'Yes my friend, there are things greater than even the gods themselves. For what are gods if there are no humans to believe in them?'  
  
Now she stretched out completely arms held wide on either side of her, eyes glowing brightly.  
  
'Let me bear unto you the prophecy of light: As I have said before, a child will be born of light, a girl, pure and innocent into the world, she will grow and learn of the ways of men. When a time of war erupts that brings the fate of middle earth and the rest of the world into question, the child will rise up and smite the foe, purifying the two rings of power in the process. Then she will watch over the world for 10,000 years in a era of light, before being re incarnated and re assuming her position as guardian of the earth. Ruling all in ultimate peace.'  
  
and thus the vision ended, always the same. Though I do not know weather to fear or whole fully accept this prophecy.  
  
Alceriniel went to turn the page to read on, but there was no more to read. She sat for a moment, thinking deeply, stroking her lower lip, thoughts going over in her mind like a waterwheel.  
  
There where two rings of power, if so where was the other one? And why where there no records of it in the first place? Also, why would the high council disapprove of the writing of such an important prophecy?  
  
She looked down at the papers before her for a long moment and held them over the lantern, the flames quickly ate away at the old paper. She dropped them on the stone floor and watched them quickly turn to ash. As soon as the last red ember had died away she replaced the papers where she had obtained them from and quietly left the library, shutting the door behind her.  
  
The room lay in complete darkness, and the ash just became another bit of dirt on the floor.  
  
(((_O))  
  
Gaaaaaaaa! Finally I finished the chapter!!!! YAYYYYY!!!  
  
I'm SORRY IT TOOK SO LONG!!! GOMEN NASIIIIIII!  
  
Stay tuned ^_~ 


	29. Realization

Alceriniel blinked a few times as her eyes re-adjusted to the sunlight as she exited the dark hallway that she had been inhabiting for the past few days. It opened up to the courtyard of Helm's where people where still cleaning up the refuse from the battle only three nights before. To the far left side of the yard she saw a group of men and elves attempting to salvage some of the stone for the repair work that was already underway. She wasn't surprised to see that Legolas was among the working group.  
  
As if he could sense her presence he turned his head in her direction and smiled before informing his workmates that he would be back in a few minutes. Then started walking towards her.  
  
It didn't take him much time to realize that something was troubling her. He could almost feel what was going on inside of her somehow.  
  
"Did you find what you where seeking?" He asked gently.  
  
"Only the small outline, I wish to learn more, but I would have to locate the original scroll that was written. Only I know not where to find it." She shrugged and sat down on a peace of currently ignored rubble and stroked her lower lip.  
  
"There are only so many place it could be." Said Legolas.  
  
Alceriniel glared at him, thinking that he was making a joke about her intelligence. Legolas seeming to pick this up held up his hands defensively.  
  
"No, I mean really, It could only be so many places if your looking for the original manuscript." He looked up an started ticking places off his fingers. "Rivendell, Lothiorien, any of the old archives kept by the elves, or." Legolas blinked once and quieted himself.  
  
"What?" she asked nudging him with her elbow to continue.  
  
"There is this one set of archives deep within the misty mountains. There is no real name for it but some just say that all the lost scrolls somehow find there way to that archive." When he saw the look of deep thought on her face, and her finger slowly make its way back up to her lower lip Legolas stopped her. "Don't bother even thinking about going to the archives, they don't exist. Many have searched the misty mountains for that place and none have found it."  
  
Alceriniel frowned for a brief moment before standing and dusting herself off.  
  
"Where are you going?" he asked. She turned around and stuck out her tongue.  
  
"I'm gonna go ask Uncle Gandalf where I might be able to find the manuscript, then I'll be back to help out with the cleaning up.: She leaned forward and kissed him lightly on the forehead making them both blush slightly. Then made her way into the inner chambers of helms deep.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
"So in short, you don't know where I could look right?" She asked the old wizard who sat across from her side of the table.  
  
The old wizard sighed and looked at her from under his bushy eyebrows.  
  
"No, I am saying that I know where you could look but I wont tell you because its to risky for you to go there."  
  
She drummed her fingers on the table trying to conjure up a counter for his refusal to tell her how to find what she seeked, she finally sunk into her chair, defeated. There was no argument that she could sum up that the wizard could not counter.  
  
"Why am I always the one being protected?" She asked in earnest. "Why is it that others are allowed to risk their lives but not me?"  
  
Gandalf said nothing, an he didn't look at her either.  
  
"Uncle," Alceriniel began gently. "Many have before asked for your council, and you have always given it, whether or not one wanted to hear it. I can see in your eyes that you know what the reasons for my plight are, then can you not even help one who has known you for ages? And thinks of you not only as a teacher and friend, but as family?"  
  
Gandalf remained silent and she let out a sigh of despair.  
  
"So be it. I set my course for Rivendell, and from there to the misty mountains. My search shall not end until I find answers to the questions that I ask."  
  
"What makes you think that this man has the answers for which you seek?" Asked Gandalf. "What makes you so sure that your quest shall not be in vain?"  
  
Alceriniel shrugged and began to make her leave, Gandalf spoke again.  
  
"Wait.: She turned around to face the wizard. "I can tell that there is no stopping you." He said slowly. :I know of a place that you can search for the answers you seek, mind you the journey is perilous, and I cannot guarantee that you will come back in one peace, if at all."  
  
She smiled softly and looked back over her shoulder at the door that lead out to the court yard where she knew Legolas was working and nodded.  
  
Gandalf stood and walked up to her, he suddenly looked very old.  
  
"Where must I go?" She asked softly.  
  
"Here." He pressed his middle and index finger against her forehead. And everything faded to black.  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Movements could be heard in the darkness, whispered words where barely distinguishable against the constant movement, but a few words could be distinguished. But what could have caused so much excitement?  
  
"She has left the world shell for the astral plane!"  
  
"We know that, but we don't know where she is, the astral plane is roughly 5 times the size of the world shell!"  
  
"Such a high amount of concentrated magical energy couldn't be that hard to locate, energy in the astral plane."  
  
"It doesn't matter whether or not she is in the astral plane or on the world shell, we cant touch her from here."  
  
"But we have people in the astral plane who could take her out.:  
  
A loud clash was heard.  
  
"FOOL! We don't want her 'taken out'! We want her ALIVE!"  
  
"Calm down master, I didn't mean the future mistress any harm."  
  
"She will be mine," came a low growl. "And she will remain perfect, if there is one scratch upon her once I receive her, the entire group that captured her will die. slowly."  
Authors Note:  
  
(((_^))  
  
Yayyy update done. well here is some good news. for those of you who didn't get to see the pic of Alceriniel I have a new link for you  
  
  
  
Go to the pic of the month page linky for her pic, or you could go to the area under the gallery to this other page called fanfic pics or what have you. Very simple process.  
  
Sorry it took so long to update, math GRRRR! *Screams* I've taken to writing this story in science. Well I got to gu time ish up for me for now  
  
*Waves* 


	30. Remember

Eyes of a fallen Angel Eyes of a tragedy.  
  
Here I am just expecting just a little bit To much from the wounded.  
  
But I see See through it all See through it all See. you.  
  
~ 3 Libras - A perfect Circle  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ PRE-RAMBLE (((_^)) Authors note  
  
SO SORRY IT TOOK SO LONG TO UPDATE, I had region contest AND I CAME IN 1st place so I get to go to state!!! T_T ~~~~(Tears of Joy) Three days out of school and our hotel is RIGHT ON THE BEACH!!  
  
Now back to the story, *turns on mood music* (If you can call Drowning Pool mood music for a deep fanfic O_O;;;) I've had Fuki Mori (deep forest) stuck in my head O__o;;; (2nd ending theme from Inu Yasha) ALSO I've come up with an idea for an ORIGINAL STORY, but I cant figure out how to start it out on paper -____-;;; damn my out of order story writing ways DAMN THEM TO HELL!!!!!  
  
Also don't you like the small opening thingy? I love 3 Libras, *hearts and cookies to them* personally I think it's a perfect song for this fanfic.  
  
Um. a lot of people asked for where I got the info for the translation (Elvish/English and such) I have links at the bottom of the page. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Quietly laying upon what felt like a bed of feathers did she awake after quiet decent from the mortal heaven to this new earth. She fell through water and earth to land here in this place that was both familiar and strange to her at the same time.  
  
The lady blinked her eyes lightly opening them slightly against the soft pale light that was growing around her.  
  
"You seemingly have slept for many a hour which lasted only a few seconds my lady." Came a voice to her side. The girl turned over slightly, arm laying lightly on her side and hair covering one eye from the position in which she slept. "Who are you bright angel that fell from the above sky of stone?" The girl blinked again then spoke slowly.  
  
"My name is Alceriniel, at least that is the name that my friends call unto me. Though I am not sure that it is my real calling name. But to have awoken into such strange surroundings in a seeming way that is both asleep and awake, tell me. Where have I strayed? And why do you speak so strangely?"  
  
A child strayed out of the shadows made of light, long blond hair fell from her shoulders in curly locks.  
  
"You are in the Great Archives, though it doesn't stay in a final position in the Astral plane. The Astral plane is one of two other worlds. This place that you stand in is the area between your world and the mirror of it. The Astral plane is where all knowledge lies, and all spirits linger here until they are reborn again."  
  
"This is heaven?" The girl laughed.  
  
"No. not heaven. Just think of this as two towns on either side of a river, this is the bridge between the two, however, people aren't supposed to cross it."  
  
"Why?"  
  
"To cross the Astral plane would disrupt the flow, nothing living is aloud into the Astral plane, only souls, and a persons unconscious mind. Also the town on the other side of the river, you don't want to go there, and you want none to enter from there. The last time one tried to cross the river, he succeeded, and allowed such terrors to enter into your world, this disrupted the flow, and because of that. Monsters started to roam abroad in your world, and light slipped into the other."  
  
"And who was it that passed through the river and disrupted the flow?" The girl laughed again and said nothing more, she just walked in the opposite direction of which the two had a moment before stood, Alceriniel followed.  
  
The girl led her a small ball of light and pointed to it. Alceriniel blinked and the girl tapped her foot impatiently.  
  
"Well?"  
  
"What do you mean well? Go up and grab the ball of light."  
  
Alceriniel raised an eyebrow.  
  
"Just do it already."  
  
She walked up calmly and put two hands on the ball of light. Suddenly she felt. detached from everything, even her spirit, like a shining star looking down upon the world. There but not really.  
  
What do you wish to know young one? Came a voice from deep within herself.  
  
'I want to know who I am' she thought to herself, 'I want to remember, I want to know the truth about me, the rings, everything.' She felt herself slowly circling around the light, but her hands remained upon it.  
  
The rings are one in the same, they are a balance to the whole, your ring is the balance to the darkness of the one, You are a prophet of the gods, and you are a god. You are the embodiment of magic, though you cannot remember this because you where reincarnated. You are the one who shall bring total peace to the free worlds, and banish all those that deserve it into darkness, and rid the world of shadow.  
  
'I know, somehow I've always known, but. what will become of me? What will happen once I clear the world of all that harms it?'  
  
That I cannot say, it is not pre-ordained, not even the god of foresight can see all that is in the future. You know the prophecy, that is what's expected of you.  
  
'What is this sword of light I carry?'  
  
Seldarine Silma* It was your fathers sword, and can only be summoned through the ring. It is easy to summon, but must draw power, at the same time when it draws power when you cancel the sword out, the energy must pass and be stored into you. Many men have died fighting a worthy cause with this sword and died because they could not handle the amount of magic energy that flowed into them. That's why you where chosen for this mission, that's why you where reincarnated from your god-self. Because you can handle the energy, once you absorb enough of it, your god self will be reawaken, and you will smite the enemy.   
  
'In theory.'  
  
Yes. in theory. there was a pause for a long moment, You wish to ask something else also.  
  
'I. I cant remember a lot of my past on earth. And. I. I don't want to be reawaken, I want to stay the way I am.'  
  
Why do you wish to stay the way you are?  
  
'. . .'  
  
I cant remind you of something that you already know, If its been blocked off you have to have somebody re-open the seal that has been placed on your mind. If there is information that people higher than me do not wish you to access, then I cannot access it.  
  
'Why not?'  
  
Its against my inner workings, if I did that then I would dissenigrate and become nothing.  
  
'I have nothing more to ask.' She thought quietly.  
  
As I have nothing more to tell. Good bye Alceriniel.  
  
A faint glimmer of warmth spread through her and she felt her feet touch the floor. Her hair fell softly around her shoulders though she couldn't feel the weight of it. The small girl was leaning against a rock casually.  
  
"Did you find out what you wanted to know?" Alceriniel said nothing for a moment, then finally she turned to the girl and asked.  
  
"What do you think of perfect peace?"  
  
"I think its just as bad as perfect Chaos."  
  
Alceriniel said nothing, she just. smiled.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ (((_^) Authors Note: Aftermath  
  
Yeah kinda short but significant nonetheless. Um. a lot of people asked for some links to Elvish websites, I'll list them at the bottom of the note, also I need to update my website  
  
Lilfiredevil chibbi #1: *pops into existence* ^^ she is so lazy that she linked all this story in her fanfic section back to the fanfiction.net site LOL  
  
^^;;;; yeah its true, I was just so lazy that I didn't want to put together all of the documents, but it looks like Computer Apps came in handy, I never knew that you could so easily turn a document into a web page without all the horrible html ^_^ \/m ~(peace sign) Um. yeah. me gonna go now.  
  
Bai bai  
  
LINKIES (they may not all be blue, but trust me they should work, just copy and past em' in the web page address box at the top of your internet window ^_~)  
  
~~~ (Really good one)  
  
Hopefully that helps a lil bit ^^;;; oki bai bai! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
FOOTNOTES:  
  
Seldarine Silma - Gods Star (Seldarine - Gods) (Silma - Star) 


	31. Due to laziness this chapter is unnamed

She was floating up, first through water and then through earth, it seemed to give without actually giving. She just seemed to pass through it. Floating up to her physical form. She was nothing more than a ball of energy. Once she reached it she wasn't sure that she would be able to fit back in there, her spirit form was much to big.  
  
She paused for a moment before reentering her body, wondering what would happen if she just stayed outside of it forever, if she could feed off the lay lines and Mana from other sources. The idea seemed to have its own personal appeals, and maybe she would try it one day. But right now she had work to do.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Her eyes fluttered open slightly, and her eyebrows furrowed. But it was when she started to breath again that it was painful, because she had been for all extensive purposes, Dead. That was why these things were dangerous, a normal human would most likely not have made it back without some kind of assistance. But she was by no means mortal, she was the very opposite, she was a god.  
  
Gandalf was asleep on the other side of the room. Even the greatest of wizards needed their sleep she guessed. But she reached out and touched one of the lines that she could now easily see when she willed it and wrapped it gently around the old man. He would be asleep long enough to let her slip out, and mused quietly on weather or not she could put the whole compound asleep. She was pretty damn sure that she could, but then again that would be the stupid thing to do.  
  
She reached out on the desk and scrawled a note on a peace of fresh white parchment and left it in Gandalf's lap. Then doing the same thing that she did with Gandalf, only with a slightly different frequency, she made herself invisible.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Her pack flung over her shoulder she made her way down through the back passageway from Helms Deep, Mor now by her side, likewise invisible.  
  
Were are we going? Mor asked. Alceriniel was quiet for a moment.  
  
"Mordor, we are going up the side of the mountain and then back around."  
  
Why are we going the long way?  
  
"Because my friend, if we go the long way we can confuse anybody who is trying to follow. But don't worry, I'm not going to make you go into Mordor." She looked over her back in a fleeting hope that Legolas, anyone may come and try to stop her, but of course none did, nobody knew what was going on, and wouldn't, Gandalf would be out of it for quite some time.  
  
Then she turned back around, and was gone.  
(((_-)) er. yeah. sorry 'bout the lack of updates and such, and the short chapters. 


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